Those  two  bound  Volumes  of  Old  New  York  Views  together  with  the  third 
volume, which  is  bound  in  a  different  way, were  the  lifetime  hobby  and  work  of 

my  dear  Father.  Lewis  Bayard  Smith. 

My  Mother, Louisa  Norwood  Smith  and  I, Bayard  Marston  Smith, have  always  felt 
that  these  books  brought  back  the  memory  of  my  Fattier  to  us  closer  than  almost 
any  of  his  possessions  which  he  left.         77e  have  both  for  years  and  years  seen 
him  work  on  them, collecting  a  picture  here  and  there  and  especially  the  years  of 
research  work  necessary  for  him  to  gather  together  the  histories  of  the  different 
subjects  of  the  views. 

My  Father  searched  many , many , years  to  try  and  get  the  historical  data  etc., 
in  connection  with  the  views  as  accurate  as  possible.        He  s;jent  many, many  hours 
going  over  old  books  of  reference, in  Libraries, and  wherever  he  thought  he  could 
find  anything  in  regard  to  them  that  would  aid  him  in  making  the  histories 

interesting  and  accurate. 

The  Views  in  these  books  are  not  of  very  great  value  at  this  writing, but .as 
time  goes  on  they  will  become  so.  Even  at  this  date  they  are  quite  old  and 
duplicates  are  froai  time  to  time  disappearing  and  especially  as  they  are  purchased 
and  put  away  by  collectors. 

The  larger  views  of  my  Father's  collections  of  Old  New  York  were  of  course 
more  valuable, but  he  I  believe  decided  that  the  ones  in  these  books  would  give  a 
very  interesting  and  accurate  view  of  the  City  of  New  York  years  ago, and  he  also 
wished  to  use  small  uniform  pictures  so  that  they  could  be  bound  in  books  of 
moderate  size. 

These  books  have  been  cherished  very  dearly  by  both  my  dear  Mother  and  by  me. 
and  I  hope  that  in  the  future  whoever  inherits  them  will  remember  the  above  and 
keep  them  in  as  good  condition  as  we  have. 

If  they  come  into  your  possession  when  you  are  young  put  them  away  until  you 
get  older, and  I  think  that  as  the  years  go  by  that  you  will  begin  to  appreciate 
them  as  we  have. 

My  dear  Father  was  a  perfect  old  New  York  Gentleman, brought  up  in  the 
"Old  School".      He  was  born  and  brought  up  there  and  descended  from  such  fine  old 
New  York  families  as  the  Lispenards, Rutgers, Mathers, Marstons, and  many  other 
connected  through  marriage, going  back  many  generations. 

Liswenard, Rutgers, and  Leonard  Streets  are  named  after  his  ancestors. 

I  hope  this  little  letter  will  make  you  feel  the  deep, deep, love  my  Mother 
and  I  have  had  for  my  Father,  and  you  will  in  time  feel  towards  these  three 
books  the  way  that  we  have  done. 


A-r, 


mm 


Avery  Architectural  and  Fine  Arts  Library 
Gift  of  Seymour  B.  Durst  Old  York  Library 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2013 


http://archive.org/details/oldnewyorkfromitOOsmit 


"OLD  NEW  YORK" 

FROM  ITS  EARLIEST  HISTORY  TO  ABOUT 
THE  YEAR  i8b8 


COMPILED,  ARRANGED  AND  ILLUSTRATED 
BY 

L.  BAYARD  SMITH 


Volume  I 


NEW  YORK 


INTRODUCTION. 


"Old  New  York." 

The  history  and  description  of  the  various  buildings  given  herein 
have  been  compiled  with  much  care  from  many  different  authorities, 
in  addition  to  information  kindly  given  me  by  many  old  citizens  of 
the  city,  and  librarians  of  various  city  libraries,  and  from  careful 
personal  researches  and  visiting  many  of  the  buildings  themselves, 
especial  care  having  been  taken  to  verify  dates  and  facts,  to  make 
them,  if  possible,  absolutely  correct. 

L.  Bayard  Smith. 


In  compiling  this  work  the  following  authorities  and  others  were 

quoted  and  used : 

Valentine's  Manuals  of  the  Common  Council. 

Valentine's  History  of  the  City  of  New  York. 

Mrs.  Martha  J.  Lamb's  History  of  the  City  of  New  York. 

Mary  L.  Booth's  History  of  the  City  of  New  York. 

W.  L.  Stone's  History  of  the  City  of  New  York. 

Jas.  Grant  Wilson's  Memorial  History. 

Watson's  Annals  of  New  York. 

Lossing's  Field  Book  of  the  Revolution  and  History  of  New  York. 

Thos.  F.  Devoe's  "Market  Book." 

Barret's  "Old  Merchants  of  New  York  City." 

Felix  Old  Boy's,  "A  Tour  Around  New  York." 

"  In  Old  New  York,"  by  T.  A.  Janvier. 

Goodrich's  Picture  of  New  York  and  Stranger's  Guide,  1828,  1846,  etc. 

Jas.  Hardie's  Description  of  the  City  of  New  York,  1S27. 

Chas.  King's  Memorial  of  the  Aqueduct. 

C.  H.  Haswell's  "  Reminiscences  of  an  Octogenarian." 

A.  C.  Dayton's  "Last  Days  of  Knickerbocker  Life  in  New  York." 

Messrs.  Harper  &  Bros. 

New  York  Directories. 

New  York  Herald,  World,  Times,  Sun,  Mail  and  Express,  Post,  Tribune,  etc. 
Various  Church  Records. 

Various  Guide  Books  of  the  City,  published  from  time  to  time,  etc. ,  etc. 


DAVID  T.  VALENTINE . 


David  T.  Valentine,  to  whom  New  Yorkers  are  indebted  for  the 
valuable  and  interesting  "Manuals  of  the  Common  Council",  compiled 
by  him  from  1842  to  1866,  was  born  in  East  Chester,  September  15th, 
1801,  and  died  in  1869.    He  came  to  New  York  when  16  years  of  age 
and  worked  in  a  grocery  store  until  he  was  22  years  old.     He  then 
became  clerk  of  the  Marine  Court,  now  extinct,  then  Deputy  Clerk  of 
the  Common  Council  and  finally  Clerk  of  same,  which  office  he  was 
continued  in  until  1868.     Besides  the  Manuals,  he  was  the  author  of 
a  "History  of  New  York",  both  the  former  and  the  latter  being  full 
of  historical  accounts  of  early  events  in  our  city's  history,  early 
Indian  Wars,  extracts  from  old  newspapers,  a  vast  amount  of  valuable 
information  relating  to  the  city  and  an  immense  number  of  pictures 
and  engravings  of  noted  personages,  buildings,  copies  of  old  maps, 
plans  of  the  city  and  a  calendar  of  all  the  city  officials  from  the 
early  days.     In  his  earlier  years  he  served  his  time  with  the  old 
27th,  now  the  7th  Regiment.     A  gentleman  of  the  old  school,  he  al- 
ways wore  a  high  hat  with  a  flat  brim,  a  swallow  tail  black  coat,  an 
expansive  shirt  front  with  plain  studs  and  a  black  necktie.  Thor- 
oughly honest  and  withal  a  most  excellent  courteous  and  kind-hearted 
gentleman,  he  was  one  of  the  best  officials  the  city  ever  had.  Pull 
and  complete  sets  of  his  "Manuals"  in  good  order  are  now  difficult 
to  obtain,  and  any  offered  would  bring  a  handsome  price. 


City  of  .Manhattan  or  New  York. 

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NEW  YORK.  1671.  FROM  THE  ORIGINAL.  IN  THE  POSSESSION  OF  THE  PUBLISHER 


THE  "STADT  HUYS". 


The  "Stadt  Huys",  State  House  or  City  Hall,  also  called  the 
"Stadt-herberg"  or  City  Tavern,  was  erected  in  1642  on  the  corner  of 
Pearl  Street    and  Coenties  alley,  fronting  the  slip.     It  was  built 
of  stone  at  the  expense  of  the  West  India  Company  and  called  the 
Company's  Tavern,  as  it  was  partly  devoted  to  the  entertainment  of 
Strangers,  who,  on  arriving  in  the  city,  were  usually  received  under 
the  hospitable  roof  of  the  Governor,  which  had  probably  been  found 
inconvenient  to  him.        In  this  celebrated  building  the  most  import- 
ant affairs  of  the  city  and  Colony  were  transacted;     Courts  were 
held;     the  transfers  of  Sovereignty  were  made  in  1664  and  1674;  the 
first  school  was  held  in  it  in  1652,  and  the  first  Court  of  Admiral- 
ty in  1665,  organized  by  Governor  Nichols,  was  convened,  and  held 
their  sessions  there.     The  jail  of  the  City  was  kept  here  for  many 
years.      In  front  of  the  building  the  militia  paraded,  and  the 
stocks,  whipping  post,  and  drinking  stool  were  placed;     and  also  the 
wooden  horse  for  riding  criminals,  and  one  of  the  redoubts,  or  half 
moon  batteries,  was  placed  a  little  distance  in  advance  on  the  wat- 
er's edge,  to  defend  the  city;     and  a  stone  wall  was  erected,  to 
connect  it  with  other  works  of  the  same  kind,  at  the  foot  of  Wall 
and  Whitehall  Streets,  and  also  to  protect  the  town  from  the  inroads 
of  the  water. 

The  corporation  of  the  city  deciding  to  erect  a  new  City  Hall 
on  the  corner  of  Nassau  and  Wall  Street,  the  old  building  was  dis- 
posed of  to  John  Rodman,  a  merchant,  in  1699,  for  L  920,  and  was  de- 
molished in  the  year  1700. 


T.  S MIT'S  VLY1N  EARLY  TIMES 
(present  foot  of  Maiden-lane  - 1861.) 


"THE  FORT" 

NEW  AMSTERDAM 
1651. 


The  first  beginning  of  "The  Fort*  was  in  1514,  a  block  house, 
surrounded  by  red  cedar  palisades,  standing  on  high  ground  about  on 
the  site  of  the  present  (1896)  row  of  brick  houses  south  of  and  fac- 
ing the  "Bowling  Green".      Until  1626  it  was  called  "Fort  Manhattes'J 
then  enlarged  and  built  of  Holland  brick  and  called  "Fort  Amsterdam" 
and  again  from  time  to  time  continually  changed,  added  to  and 
strengthened . 

On  its  surrender  to  the  English  in  1564  it  was  called  "Fort 
James",  and  during  the  Dutch  occupation  again  in  1673  it  was  called 
"Fort  Willem  Hendrick",   then  from  1674  to  1689  "Fort  James"  again. 
Its  name  was  still  changed  several  times  as  successive  sovereigns 
attained  the  throne  and  thus  is  was  known  as  "Fort  William",  "Fort 
William  Henry"  and  "Fort  Anne",  until  the  Georges  became  Sovereigns, 
when  it  was  named  "Fort  George",  which  name  it  retained  until  its 
final  demolition  in  1790-91. 

For  nearly  two  centuries  it  was  the  most  important  edifice  in 
the  city,  it  being  not  only  the  principal  means  of  defence  and  the 
centre  of  military  affairs,  but  from  the  circumstance  that  it  con- 
tained within  its  walls  the  residence  of  the  Provincial  Governors, 
the  principal  officers  of  the  State  Civil  Authority  and  for  a  long 
time  the  only  place  of  worship  the  old  Dutch  "St.  Nicholas  Church", 
built  in  1542  and  relinquished  in  1693  (the  congregation  then  taking 
possession  of  its  new  edifice  in  Garden  St.)  it  then  being  demolish- 
ed and  in  its  place  then  being  erected  in  1594,  a  chapel  of  the  es- 
tablished church  that  being  the  First  Episcopal  Church  in  New  York. 
Upon  the  breaking  out  of  the  Revolutionary  War  in  1776,  it  with  its 
dependencies  was  the  principal  work  upon  the  Island  and  was  enlarged 
by  the  British  after  they  took  possession  of  the  city.     After  the 
close  of  the  War  and  about  the  year  1788,  it  was  resolved  to  remove 
the  entire  work  and  to  erect  a  house  for  the  residence  of  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  upon  its  site. 

Its  appearance  at  the  time  immediately  preceding  its  demolition 
is  described  as  follows:     "First  a  green  bank,  which  was  sloping  and 
about  14  feet  high,  on  which  were  erected  the  walls  of  about  20  feet 
additional  height.     In  its  front  towards  the  "Bowling  Green"  were 
two  apple-trees  and  an  old  linden  tree  which  were  about  the  same 
height  as  the  walls.     The  proposed  residence  called  "The  Government 
House"  was  erected  of  brick,  completed  in  1791,  the  foundations  be- 
ing built  of  the  stone  from  the  walls  of  the  Old  Fort.     This  build- 
ing was  taken  down  in  1815  and  the  grounds  levelled  and  made  into 
building  lots. 


RESIDENCE  OP  JACOB  LEISLER 
ON  THE  STRAND,   NOW  WHITEHALL  STREET. 

The  view  as  shown,  the  residence  of  Jacob  Leisler  on  the  Strand 
now  Whitehall  Street,  was  the  first  brick  dwelling  erected  in  the 
City.  He  was  one  of  the  wealthiest  of  the  old  Dutch  burghers,  hav- 
ing emigrated  from  Frankfort  to  New  Amsterdam  in  the  Ship  "Otter"  in 
1660  as  a  soldier  in  the  service  of  the  West  India  Company,  and  soon 
after  arrival  engaged  in  commerce,  becoming  one  of  the  leading  ship- 
ping merchants  of  the  City. 

The  Revolution  or  usurpation  of  the  powers  of  government  by  a 
portion  of  the  citizens  of  the  city  in  1689  was  led  by  him  who  as- 
sumed the  title  of  Lieutenant-Governor,  but  who  finally  in  1691  was 
deposed  by  the  Government  of  England,  tried  for  treason  and  hanged, 
on  May  16,  1691,  the  scaffold  being  erected  near  the  lower  end  of 
the  present  City  Hall  Park,  on  a  farm  belonging  to  him  in  full  view 
of  his  country  seat. 

In  his  dying  speech  he  declared  that  while  he  might  have  been 
guilty  of  excesses,  his  actions  had  been  for  the  cause  of  William 
and  Mary,  the  defence  of  the  Protestant  religion  and  the  good  of  the 
Country.     His  body  was  buried,  by  his  own  request,  in  the  garden 
near  the  foot  of  the  scaffold  but  a  few  years  after  it  was  disinter- 
red and  re-buried  with  great  ceremony  in  the  Old  Dutch  Church  in 
Garden  Street.       In  1695  the  Parliament  of  Great  Britain  reversed 
the  attainder  of  Treason,  and  his  property,  which  at  the  time  of  his 
death  had  been  confiscated,  was  restored  to  his  heirs. 


HIP  -^Hw^BiiM 

LD  DUTCH  HOUSE,  Rips  Bay,  NEW-YORK 


ABROAD  S"P   !  OLD  .DTJ'L'CJf  HOUSE  IN  PEAKL  St 

niu'7r.1fi?.fl  IK 97.  r.«mo!jshea"l828 


OLD  DUTCH  HOUSE 
KIP'S  BAY,  EAST  RIVER. 


This  old  house,  first  built  in  1655,  but  rebuilt  once  or  twice, 
and  situated  near  the  present  corner  of  35th  Street  and  Second  Ave- 
nue was  the  residence  of  Jacobus"  Kip,  First  Secretary  to  the  Court 
of  Burgomasters  and  Schepens  in  New  Amsterdam  in  1653. 

He  owned  a  farm  of  150  acres  in  Kip's  Bay,  East  River,  about 
the  foot  of  the  present  35th  Street,  and  one  year  after  his  marriage 
to  Marie  La  Montagne,  daughter  of  Dr.  La  Montagne,  erected  the  house 
for  their  residence.     It  was  built  of  brick,  imported  from  Holland, 
and  a  stone  coat  of  Arras  of  the  Kip  family,  projected  over  the  door- 
way.    Five  generations  of  the  family  were  born  on  the  premises. 

For  a  brief  period,  while  in  the  neighborhood,  Washington  made 
it  his  headquarters  and  the  first  landing  of  the  British  under  Lord 
Howe,  at  the  taking  of  the  island  in  September  1776,  was  made  at  the 
rocky  point  on  Kip's  Bay  hard  by,  his  skirmishers  driving  the  Ameri- 
cans from  their  position  behind  the  dwelling.    Lord  Howe,  Sir  Henry 
Clinton,  Earl  Percy  and  General  Knyphausen  were  at  times  sheltered 
under  its  roof. 

In  1780  it  was  held  by  Colonel  Williams  of  the  80th  Royal  Regi- 
ment and  here  on  the  evening  of  the  19th  September  he  gave  a  dinner 
to  Sir  Henry  Clinton  and  his  staff,  as  a  parting  compliment  to  Major 
Andre,    who  was  to  depart  the  next  morning  on  the  secret  and  impor- 
tant expedition  which  within  two  weeks  ended  in  his  capture  and  his 
death, as  a  spy, by  hanging.     It  was  the  oldest  house  in  the  city  when 
it  was  demolished  in  1351  upon  the  opening  of  35th  Street  on  the  di- 

rppf    1  fna    n  P   wfc  ■? /»Vi  r>l  noo    fn    F!»r»nrirt    AvfiniiP    it  stood. 


THE  SECOND  CHURCH  IN  GARDEN  STREET 


KING'S  ARM  TAVERN. 
BURNS*   COFFEE  HOUSE. 
THE  ATLANTIC  GARDEN. 

This  Building  stood  in  Broadway,  near  the  Bowling  Green,  and 
this  view  is  a  representation  as  seen  from  the  garden.     As  near  as 
can  be  ascertained,   it  was  erected  about  1725,  built  of  wood  with 
the  front  of  small  yellow  bricks,   imported  from  Holland, with  a  gar- 
den extending  to  the  river,  which  flowed  along  the  west  side  of 
Greenwich  Street.       It  was  known  as  "Burns • Coffee  House"  and  also 
as  the  "King's  Arras"  kept  by  Mrs.  Steele,  and  afterwards  conducted 
by  Edward  Barden.     Its  proprietor,  during  the  British  possession  of 
the  City  is  not  known.     In  1765  a  meeting  was  called  at  this  house 
and  resolves  were  passed  to  enforce  opposition  to  the  Stamp  Act  Law 
and  to  form  associations  to  discourage  the  importation  of  goods 
from  Great  Britain  until  the  Act  was  rescinded.     The  leaden  statue 
of  the  King  in  the  Bowling  Green,  was  pulled  down  during  the  War  by 
a  party  who  had  assembled  for  that  purpose  in  the  garden  of  the 
tavern.      On  the  escape  of  the  traitor,  Arnold,   from  West  Point,  on 
his  arrival  in  this  City,  he  made  this  house  his  headquarters,  and 
it  was  from  its  garden  Sergeant  Champe  intended  to  have  made  his 
attempt  to  abduct  the  traitor,   in  accordance  with  the  plan  matured 
by  Washington.       In  later  years  it  was  known  as  the  "Atlantic  Gar- 
den", being  used  as  a  boarding  house,  a  tavern,  and  a  public  garden 
by  turns,  and  in  1860  the  site  was  purchased  by  the  Hudson  River 
R.  R.  Co.  when  the  old  building  was  taken  down  and  the  ground  used 
for  Depot  purposes. 


VAN  CORTLANDT  MANSION. 
KINGrSBRI  DGE . 


This  old  Mansion,  erected  by  Jacobus  Van  Cortlandt  in  1748 
still  stands  (1896)   in  what  is  now  Van  Cortlandt  Park. 

During  the  Revolution  it  was  occupied  most  of  the  time  by  some 
of  the  Van  Cortlandt  family  who  sided  with  the  Colonies,  a  short 
time  by  the  Hessian  Commandant  of  the  Green  Yagers  and  at  the  close 
of  the  War  General  Washington  made  it  his  headquarters  just  before 
his  triumphal  entry  into  New  York  on  Evacuation  Day  1783. 

In  1776  just  before  the  occupation  of  the  city  by  the  English, 
Augustus  Van  Cortlandt,   then  Town  Clerk,  removed  to  the  place,  by 
authority  of  the  Committee  of  Safety,  the  records  of  the  City,  con- 
cealed them  in  chests  and  secured  them  in  a  cellar,  made  for  that 
purpose,  in  the  garden,  of  stone  and  brick,  well  arched  and  exceed- 
ingly dry.     Then  it  was  the  old  house  saw  the  retreat  of  a  part  of 
the  American  Army  on  its  way  to  White  Plains  and  again  in  1778-1779 
Lincoln's  ragged  troops  marched  by  it  in  their  unsuccessful  attempts 
to  recapture  Kingsbridge. 

Other  stirring  events  were  seen  from  its  windows,  standing  as 
it  did  on  the  verge  of  the  debatable  or  "neutral  ground"  which  was 
ravaged  by  the  camp  followers  of  both  armies. 

The  old  Mansion  is  now  in  charge  and  under  the  care  of  the  So- 
ciety of  The  Colonial  Dames  of  the  State  of  New  York,  who  have  had 
it  restored  and  put  in  order  to  preserve  it  as  one  of  the  relics 
connected  with  the  early  history  of  our  Country,  principally  through 
the  efforts  and  labor  of  Mrs.  Howard  Townsend,  President  of  the 

nam  o  e 


TRINITY  (  Hl'IK  ll  AS  RNIiAUOKll 


THE    PERRY  HOUSE,  IT  IH 

(Frilton  Street,  BronJc/yn) 


THE  RESIDENCE  of  N.W.  STUYVESANT.  ^'  k  j 

v/hirti  formerly  stood  m  8cK  Street,  hetwceji  1st  flc  21  Avenues. 


THE  F.ESICENCE  of  N.W.  3  TU  YVES  ANT.  ^!  I 

v/hicti  formerly  stood  m  8ch  Street,  ketwe.en  1st  &  2J  Avenues 


OLD      VARIAN  HOUSE, 
BLOOMING DALE  ROAD. 


The  dwelling  represented  by  the  engraving  was  taken  down  some- 
where between  the  years  1840  to  1850.     It  was  the  residence  of 
Isaac  Varian,  and  the  birth-place  of  his  children,  among  whom  were 
ex-mayor  Isaac  L.  Varian  and  Alderman,  George  W.  Varian,  and  was  oc- 
cupied by  him  as  his  home  at  the  time  of  his  death.       The  farm  at- 
tached to  the  property  contained  about  twenty-seven  and  a  half 
acres,  fronting  originally  on  the  Bloomingdale  road,  and  covering 
the  blocks  within  the  present  limits  of  Broadway,  Twenty-sixth  to 
Thirtieth  Streets,  and  extending  nearly  to  the  Seventh  Avenue.  The 
northerly  seventeen  and  a  half  acres  were  purchased  by  Mr.  Varian 
of  the  executors  of  John  DeWitt,  to  whom  the  same  were  conveyed  by 
Jacob  Horn  in  1751.     The  southerly  ten  acres  were  purchased  from 
Adam  Vanderburgh.     The  property  is  said  to  have  been  in  the  family 
about  eighty  years,  and  was  cultivated  as  farming  land.     The  old 
house  is  said  to  have  shown  evidences  of  having  been  in  part  con- 
structed out  of  a  ship's  cabin,  but  from  whence  this  relic  was  de- 
rived, we  have  no  account.     The  building  itself  was  a  noticeable  ob- 
ject in  late  years,  partly  owing  to  its  humble  appearance  in  the 
midst  of  a  rapidly  improving  neighborhood,  and  partly  from  the  perti 
nacity  evidenced  by  its  wealthy  occupant,  who,  although,  raised  to 
very  affluent  circumstances  by  the  rise  in  value  of  his  land,  yet 
clung  to  the  humble  homestead  of  his  childhood,  where  his  father  had 
lived  before  him,  until  his  grasp  was  released  by  death. 


STRAW  F-  ERR  V    H  I  LL     HOTEL,  now  WOODLAWN 


STRAWBERRY  HILL  HOTEL . 
LATER  WOODLAWN. 
1856. 


This  picturesque  property  was  beautifully  situated  on  the 
Bloomingdale  Road,  and  was  a  well  known  hostlery  or  antique  inn  as 
far  back  as  the  era  of  the  "Revolution",  the  old  house  having  prob- 
ably been  built  about  1750,  although  the  exact  year  can  not  be  as- 
certained.    It  was  then  called  "The  Strawberry  Hill  Hotel"  and  was  a 
famous  resort  of  the  young  people  of  the  city  up  to  the  close  of  the 
last  century.     About  that  time  it  came  into  the  possession  of  John 
James,  and  by  him  was  divided  into  smaller  estates  and  the  house 
used  as  a  rural  residence.     It  subsequently  passed  into  the  posses- 
sion of  the  Haywards  and  on  the  partition  of  their  estates  about 
1845  became  the  property  of  Dr.  William  B.  Moffatt,  of  celebrated 
"Moffatt  pill"  renown,  and  who  resided  there  for  some  years.  The 
house  commanded  a  fine  water  prospect,  as  the  eye,  on  a  clear  day, 
could  enjoy  a  view  of  the  Hudson  River  for  many  miles  North  and 
South,  and  could  descry  objects  from  Sing  Sing  to  the  Narrows. 
Later  on  as  a  roadhouse  and  place  of  public  resort  it  was  a  favo- 
rite, and  largely  patronized  under  the  popular  management  of  Captain 
W.  L.  Wiley,  a  great  political  favorite  in  his  immediate  neighbor- 
hood. 

The  view  shows  the  old  place  as  it  was  in  the  year  1856  and  not 
many  years  after  it  shared  the  fate  of  all  the  other  celebrated 
road  houses  and  disappeared  somewhere  in  the  sixties. 


THE  MANSION  OF  GENERAL  STRYKER . 


The  old  "Stryker"  Mansion,  situated  at  the  present  11th  Avenue, 
between  52nd  and  54th  Streets,  was,  until  within  a  few  years  (1895) 
surrounded  by  its  gardens,  reaching  from  the  Avenue  down  to  the 
Water* s  Edge  and  covering  an  area  of  seven  acres.     It  was  originally 
built  by  John  Hopper,  in  the  year  1751,  who  was  a  farmer,  his  Es- 
tate, comprising  about  300  acres  of  choice  land,  reaching  from  the 
present  50th  Street  and  5th  Avenue  down  to  the  North  River.     He  had 
three  sons  and  desiring  to  give  each  an  equal  share,  he  divided  his 
property  into  three  farms  of  100  acres  and  built  on  each  a  stone 
house,  one  of  them  being  the  Mansion  in  question.     Upon  his  death- 
it  was  inherited  by  his  son,  John  Hopper,  Jr.,  whose  daughter  was 
married  to  James  Stryker,  it  finally  descending  in  1819  to  one  of 
the  grandchildren,  General  Garrit  Stryker,  a  very  popular  Militia 
officer,  subsequently  becoming  a  Major  General  in  that  service, 
serving  in  the  Legislature  and  filling  various  City  offices  most 
honorably.     He  improved  the  old  house,  increasing  its  size,  adding 
a  fine  piazza  and  broad  balconies  in  the  rear,  building  a  fish  pond, 
and  otherwise  improving  and  embellishing  the  whole  place.     Here  he 
resided  until  his  death  in  1868,  aged  80  years,  the  Mansion  being 
inherited  by  his  son  James  Alexander  Stryker. 

The  old  Mansion  was  still  standing  as  late  as  1890,  but  shorn 
of  its  former  glory,  tenements  and  stables  hedging  it  in  on  either 
side  and  docks  and  lumber  yards  occupying  the  place  where  its  green 
lawn  used  to  stretch  down  to  the  river  side. 


Pearl  Stred,  WewTorl. 

far  A  r.  VizZenJt,^  tTKetMU-ccl-.J 


THE  WALTON  HOUSE . 


The  Walton  House  which  stood  at  No.   326  Pearl  Street,  formerly 
called  queen  Street,  erected  in  1754,  by  William  Walton,  of  English 
ancestry,  who  had  amassed  a  fortune  by  successful  ventures  in  for- 
eign trade,  was  the  most  costly  private  residence  which  had  been  at- 
tempted on  this  continent.     It  was  English  in  design,   its  walls  be- 
ing as  substantial  as  many  modern  churches.     It  was  built  of  yellow 
brick,   imported  from  Holland,  the  expensive  and  luxurious  furniture 
also  being  imported.     The  superb  staircase  in  its  ample  hall,  with 
mahogany  handrails  and  banisters,  by  age  as  dark  as  ebony,  was  fit 
for  any  nobleman's  palace.     The  grovncls  extended  down  to  the  river 
and  were  laid  out  and  cultivated  with  fastidious  care.     Mr.  Walton 
gave  the  most  sumptuous  entertainments,   treating  his  guests  with 
profuse  prodigality,  his  table  and  sideboard  groaning  with  the  weight 
of  massive  silver.     The  fame  of  its  splendor  and  expensive  style  ex- 
tended to  England  and  was  quoted  there  as  a  proof  of  the  mad  extrav- 
agance of  the  Colonists  and  their  ability  to  support  unlimited  taxa- 
tion.    Among  other  brilliant  affairs  it  was  the  scene  of  the  mar- 
riage of  Citizen  Genet,  the  Minister  of  France,   to  the  daughter  of 
Governor  Clinton.     The  venerable  mansion  remained  for  fifty  years  in 
uninterrupted  succession  in  the  family  of  the  original  proprietor 
and  in  late  years  changes  were  made,   the  lower  story  being  trans- 
formed into  warehouses  and  the  upper  part  into  an  emigrant  boarding 
house.     The  grounds  on  which  the  Walton  House  stood,  had  originally 
been  the  shipyard  of  John  Yerworth,   shipwright,  who  sold  it  to  Mr. 
Walton  in  the  year  1721  for  L300.     The  old  mansion  was  finally  de- 
molished in  1881. 


K I XOS    COIjJj  EO  F  .  N  Y 


METHODIST  CHURCH  in  JOHN  ST. 
erectei  in  1758  ■ 


KING'S  COLLEGE . 


King's  College,   (since  the  Revolution  known  as  Columbia  Col- 
lege) originally  stood  on  what  was  then  a  farm  in  the  suburbs  of  the 
City,  or  what  became  in  later  times  an  unbroken  plot  between  Barclay 
and  Murray  Streets  and  Church  Street  and  College  Place.      Park  Place 
went  only  to  Church  Street  and  the  street  from  College  Place  to  the 
River  was  called  Robinson  Street.       The  establishment  of  a  College 
was  first  suggested  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Anne  in  a  letter  written  in 
1702,  by  Governor  Lewis  Morris,  but  nothing  was  done  until  1754, 
when  a  charter  was  granted  to  "The  Governors  of  the  College  of  the 
Province  of  New  York  in  the  City  of  New  York  in  America. "      The  first 
President  was  Or.  Samuel  Johnson  of  Stratford,  Conn.      He  entered 
upon  his  duties  in  July,  1754,  and  on  the  17th  of  that  month,  the 
first  class  of  students,  eight  in  number,  assembled  in  the  school 
house  belonging  to  Trinity  Church.       The  names  of  these  students  were 


The  corner  stone  of  the  College  building  was  laid  on  August 
23,  1756.       During  the  Revolution,  the  College  was  practically  clos- 
ed and  the  buildings  were  occupied  alternately  by  the  Royalists  and 
Patriots  as  barracks  or  for  hospital  purposes.      College  exercises 
were  resumed  in  1784,   in  which  year  an  act  was  passed  by  the  Legis- 
lature of  the  State  of  New  York,  whereby  the  name  was  changed  to 
"Columbia".       Important  additions  were  made  to  the  buildings  in  1820 
and  in  1829.      The  exercises  of  the  college  were  continued  there  un- 
til May  7,  1857,  when  the  move  was  made  to  the  Old  Deaf  and  Dumb 
Asylum  on  49th  and  50th  Streets  and  Madison  Avenue. 


Robert  Bayard 
Joshua  Bloomer 
Henry  Cruger 
Rudolph  Ritzema 


Thomas  Marston 
Philip  Van  Cortlandt 
Samuel  Verplanck 
Samuel  Provoost. 


THE      OLD  JAIL. 
HALL  OP  RECORDS. 
CITY  HALL  PARK. 


The  "Old  Jail,"  called  "The  Provost"  was  built  in  the  Fields, 
now  in  the  City  Hall  Park,  about  1757-1758,  and  was  transformed  in 
later  years  by  the  skill  of  the  architect  to  the  present  "Hall  of 
Records",  the  walls  being  the  same  as  the  original  building.     It  was 
made  memorable  during  the  occupation  of  the  city  by  the  British 
Forces  from  1776  to  1783  as  a  Prison  under  the  superintendence  of 
the  noted  Captain  Cunningham,  Provost  Marshal,  a  most  cruel  tyrant 
and  bully,  and  his  deputy,  Sergeant  Keefe,  one  of  the  most  cold 
blooded  monsters  that  ever  lived. 

An  admission  into  this  modern  bastile  was  enough  to  appal  the 
stoutest  heart,  cruelty  and  brutality  being  carried  to  an  extreme 
degree.     It  was  used  more  particularly  for  prisoners  of  rank,  civil, 
naval,  and  military,  and  so  closely  were  they  packed  that  when  they 
laid  down  at  night  to  rest  on  the  hard  oak  planks,  they  were  so 
wedged  and  compact  as  to  form  almost  a  solid  mass  of  human  bodies. 
Could  the  dumb  walls  speak,  what  scenes  of  anguish,  what  tales  of 
agonizing  woe,  might  they  disclose! 

As  above  stated,  after  its  reconstruction  it  was  used  as  the 
"Hall  of  Records"  or  Register  Office,  for  which  it  is  still  (1896) 
used . 


N°  1  BROADWAY,  NEW-YORK 


r~ 


RHINE1  ANDERS  SUGAR  HOUSE  &  RESIDENCE 
ketween  William*  Rose  St? 

"  The  last  of  Che  Sua-ar  House  &  Prison  cf  che  Revolution* .  - 


No.   1  BROADWAY. 


This  building,  built  of  brick  imported  from  England,  was  erect- 
ed in  1760  by  the  Hon.  Captain  Archibald  Kennedy,  of  the  Royal  Navy, 
Collector  of  the  Port  of  New  York,  he  having  purchased  the  site 
from,  and  demolished  a  tavern  long  kept  there  by  old  Pieter  Kocks, 
a  Dutchman.     At  the  period  of  its  erection  the  garden  in  the  rear 
extended  to  the  Hudson.     Captain  Kennedy  returned  to  England  prior 
to  the  Revolution,  and  became  Earl  of  Cassilis,  the  house  going  to 
his  youngest  son,  Robert  Kennedy,  from  whom  it  passed  into  the  pos- 
session of  the  late  Nathaniel  Prime,  who  resided  there  for  a  number 
of  years. 

It  had  a  broad  handsome  front,  with  a  carved  doorway  in  the 
centre,  wide  halls,  grand  staircases  and  spacious  rooms,  the  parlor 
being  fifty  feet  in  length,  and  the  banqueting  hall  a  magnificent 
apartment . 

During  the  occupation  of  the  City  by  the  British  troops,  it  was 
severally  occupied  as  the  residence  or  Headquarters  of  Sir  Guy  Carl- 
ton, Sir  Henry  Clinton,  Lord  Cornwallis  and  possibly  prior  thereto 
for  a  short  period  by  Washington,  but  this  is  not  certain. 

Major  Andre's  last  interview  with  his  Commanding  General  previ- 
ous to  his  departure  on  his  fatal  mission,  which  finally  ended  in 
his  execution  was  held  there.     After  the  War  it  was  occupied  at  dif- 
ferent times  as  a  residence  by  many  families  of  distinction  up  to 
the  year  1850  when  it  was  used  as  a  Hotel  or  Restaurant  known  as 
"The  Washington  House"  until  in  May  1382  it  was  demolished,  upon  its 
site  being  erected  by  Cyrus  W.  Field,  the  present  elegant  "Washing- 
ton Building",  begun  July  1882  and  completed  in  January  1884. 


RHINELANDER ' S  SUGAR  HOUSE. 


Erected  in  1763  at  Rose,  William  and  Duane  Streets,  first 
known  as  the  "Cuyler  Sugar  House",  afterwards  as  the  "Rhinelander " 
Sugar  House,  it  became  during  the  struggle  for  Liberty  a  prison 
crammed  and  jammed  with  the  brave  men  who  were  fighting  for  freedom. 
Here  400  prisoners,  under  charge  of  inhuman  British  provost  marshals 
and  deputies,  were  packed,  in  the  sad  year  of  1777  and  later,  with 
no  ventilation,  gasping  for  air,  and  dying  like  sheep,  none  being 
given  even  a  soldier* s  funeral.     It  was  built  of  small,  square, 
evenly  cut,  and  neatly  fitted  brownstone  blocks,  with  windows  few 
and  insignificant.     Above  the  stone  rising  to  the  peak,  were  courses 
of  brick,  and  built  in,  in  black  brick,  were  the  letters  B.  R.  C. 
perpetuating  the  initials  of  the  builder  Bernhardt  R.  Cuyler.  The 
Rhinelanders  lived  in  close  proximity  to  the  business.     In  later 
years  the  building  was  used  for  various  purposes,  sorting  and  pack- 
ing of  rags,  bookbinding,  printing,  &c . ,  until  it  was  finally  demol- 
ished in  1892  to  make  way  for  a  splendid  modern  building. 


MANSION  CP  THE  LATE  BISHOP  MOORE. 


The  house  which  stood  on  the  block  between  the  Ninth  and  Tenth 
Avenues,  and  Twenty-Second  and  Twenty- third  Streets,  known  as  the 
Chelsea  house,  had  originally  but  two  stories.     It  was  built,  before 
the  War  of  the  Revolution,  by  the  late  Mary  Clarke,  widow  of  Thomas 
Clarke . 

During  the  Revolutionary  struggle,  Mrs.  Clarke  and  her  daugh- 
ters remained  in  the  house,  agreeably  to  the  advice  of  one  of  the 
American  officers.     A  number  of  American  soldiers  were  billeted  upon 
them,  which  caused  them  so  much  distress  that  one  of  the  officers 
represented  their  situation  to  General  Washington,  who  thereupon 
rode  to  the  house,  and  gave  orders  by  which  the  family  were  relieved 
While  the  American  troops  were  there,   a  British  vessel  in  the  Hud- 
son fired  a  ball ,  which  lodged  in  the  house,  but  hurt  no  one. 

When  the  British  took  possession  of  New  York,  a  number  of  Hes- 
sians were  quartered  in  or  about  the  house. 

The  dwelling  house,  and  part  of  the  Chelsea  farm  came  into  the 
possession  of  the  late  Bishop  Moore,  by  the  will  of  Mrs.  Clarke,  who 
died  in  1802.     The  property  was,   in  1813,  conveyed  by  Bishop  Moore 
and  his  wife,  a  daughter  of  Mrs.  Clarke,   to  their  son,  Clement  0. 
Moore,  with  whom  they  remained  as  long  as  they  lived. 

When  the  streets  and  avenues  about  Chelsea  were  regulated,  the 
old  house  had  a  third  story  added  to  it,  cellars  built  under  the  old 
foundation,  and  the  whole  square  was  walled  around. 

The  corporation  of  the  City,  about  1854,   ordered • a  bulkhead  to 
be  built  along  the  river  front,  when  the  old  place  was  dug  down,  and 
of  course  the  old  house  destroyed. 


"THE  GRANGE " . 
HOME  OP  ALEXANDER  HAMILTON. 


"The  Grange"  built  by  Alexander  Hamilton  in  1800  and  so  called 
from  the  Ancestral  seat  of  his  Grandfather  in  Scotland,  is  still 
standing  (1896)  at  about  the  present  143rd  Street  and  Tenth  Avenue. 

A  square  frame  dwelling  of  two  stories  with  large  roomy  base- 
ment, ornamental  balustrades  and  immense  chimney  stacks.     Its  apart- 
ments were  large  and  numerous  and  all  its  workmanship  substantial. 
One  great  feature  was  its  drawing  room  doors,  which  were  old  fashion- 
ed mirrors. 

He  removed  with  his  family  into  the  house  in  1802  embellished 
the  grounds  with  flowers  and  shrubbery  and  planted  thirteen  gum-tree 
naming  them  respectively  after  the  thirteen  original  States  of  the 
Union.      Hardly  two  years  after  this,  in  July,  1804,  he  left  the 
house,  never  to  return,  to  fight  his  death  duel  with  Aaron  Burr, 
which  took  place  on  a  plateau  on  the  New  Jersey  shore  about  a  half  a 
mile  above  Weehawken.    Being  mortalJy  wounded,  he  was  conveyed  to 
the  house  of  Mrs.  Bayard,  near  the  site  of  the  present  Horatio 
Street,  where  he  died  the  following  day. 

About  1892  the  house  was  removed  a  short  distance  from  its 
original  site  to  the  East  of  Convent  Avenue  becoming  the  property  of 
St.  Luke^  Parish  and  used  as  a  Rectory,  the  thirteen  trees  above 
mentioned  still  remaining  across  the  Avenue  near  143rd  Street, 
strongly  fenced  in,  the  ground  upon  which  the  trees  stand,  having 
been  purchased  by  the  late  Orlando  B.  Potter,  avowedly  to  prevent 
their  destruction. 


E  [  D T Va '  ■  ilJ 

OLD  HOUSE  COf<  BROAD  &  WATER  STS  RUIL.'E  Vfi4 


THE  BEEKMAN  MANSION. 


The  Beekman  Mansion,  near  Turtle  Bay,  on  the  banks  of  the  East 
River,  near  the  corner  of  the  present  51st  Street  and  First  Avenue, 
on  account  of  its  fine  situation  and  extensive  garden,  was  always  a 
favorite  residence  during  the  war,  of  the  British  commanders. 

The  house  was  erected  in  1764,  by  Dr.  James  Beekman,  who  with 
his  family  vacated  it  on  the  taking  of  the  city  in  1776  by  the  Brit- 
ish troops  and  General  Howe  made  it  his  Headquarters  immediately 
thereafter. 

The  greenhouse  on  the  left  of  the  picture  is  remarkable  as  be- 
ing the  place  of  examination  and  trial  of  Captain  Nathan  Hale,  whose 
sad  fate  cast  a  gloom  over  the  American  Army,  then  encamped  on  Har- 
lem Heights.    He  was  confined  here  on  the  night  of  the  21st  of  Sep- 
tember, and  on  the  next  morning  handed  over  to  the  tender  mercies  of 
Provost  Marshall  Cunningham,  who  hung  him  on  an  apple  tree  in  Rut- 
gers orchard. 

The  gardener  kept  a  memorandum  during  the  war,  showing  the  time 
that  British  officers  in  succession  made  the  house  their  headquar- 
ters, the  record  being:     General  Howe,  15th  September  1776,  Commis- 
sary Loring  on  the  1st  of  May  1777,  General  Sir  Henry  Clinton  the 
20th  October  1778,  General  Robertson  May  1st,  1782,  General  Carleton 
the  16th  of  June  1783  to  the  evacuation. 

It  was  also  occupied  in  1731  by  Madame  de  Riedesel,  wife  of  the 
Hessian  General.  In  later  years  it  was  owned  by  Hon.  James  W.  Beek- 
man, and  was  finally  demolished  about  1874. 


RESIDENCE  OP  LORD  STERLING, 
BROAD  STREET. 


The  engraving  represents  the  Residence  of  Lord  William  Alexan- 
der Sterling,  which  formerly  stood  on  the  lots  now  covered  by  the 
buildings  No.   67  and  69  Broad  Street,  as  it  was  about  the  time  of 
the  Revolution,  having  been  probably  erected  a  number  of  years  prev- 
ious, although  the  exact  date  can  not  be  ascertained.    Re  was  born 
in  New  York  in  1726  and  was  the  only  officer  in  the  Continental  Army 
(except  those  of  foreign  birth)  who  bore  a  title,  having  inherited 
a  claim  to  an  Earldom  and  visited  Scotland  to  contest  it.    He  was 
unsuccessful,  having  spent  a  large  part  of  his  fortune  in  this  vain 
attempt.    When  the  Revolution  began  he  entered  the  American  service 
and  as  an  act  of  courtesy  was  called  "Lord  Sterling"  after  the  lost 
Earldom.    He  had  a  command  at  Long  Island,  where  he  was  taken  pris- 
oner but  was  exchanged  and  resumed  service.    He  was  a  devoted  admir- 
er of  Washington.     Lord  Sterling  was  one  of  the  oldest  of  the  Ameri- 
can Army,  being  Washington's  senior  by  eleven  years.    He  died  in  Al- 
bany in  January  1783,  aged  fifty-seven,  his  body  being  brought  to 
this  city  and  deposited  in  the  ancestral  vault  in  Trinity  Church 
Yard,  and  which  bears  the  following  inscription: 

"Vault  built  in  1738  -  James  Alexander  and  his  descendants  by 
his  son  William  Earl  of  Sterling  and  his  daughter." 


THE  AP THORPE  HOUSE . 


The  elegant  Mansion  of  Charles  Ward  Apthorpe,  appointed  by  the 
King  as  one  of  the  honorable  councell.ors  of  the  Royal  Governor  of 
New  York  built  in  1767  formerly  faced  the  Hudson  River  and  the 
Bloomingdale  Road  at  about  the  present  corner  of  91st  Street  and 
Ninth  Avenue.     A  fine  old  specimen  of  Colonial  architecture,  the 
great  panels  and  joints  of  oak  in  the  interior  having  been  imported 
from  England.     The  ample  lawn  stretched  down  towards  the  river,  dot- 
ted with  groves  of  various  trees. 

Washington  made  this  house  his  Headquarters  in  the  stirring 
days  after  the  battle  of  Long  Island  and  it  was  under  its  roof  that 
the  secret  expedition  of  Nathan  Hale  into  the  enemy's  camp  for 
trustworthy  information  was  cautiously  planned.     Here  also  Lord  Howe 
had  his  headquarters  when  the  Connecticut  Rangers  and  the  Virginia 
Riflemen  under  Leitch  and  Knowlton  (both  of  whom  were  slain)  sent 
the  British  Column,  flying  across  Harlem  Plains,  down  towards  this 
point  and  through  McOowans  Pass. 

Here  Lord  Howe  remained  for  some  days  and  nursed  his  wounded 
honor,  and  Clinton,  and  Carleton,  and  Andre  also  led  the  Minuet  in 
these  rooms  and  gave  royalist  belles  a  taste  of  the  Court  splendors 
of  King  George.     It  was  demolished  about  1891,  the  last  few  years 
of  its  existence  having  been  degraded  to  a  beer  garden,  a  portion  of 
its  guard  of  ancient  forest  trees  being  known  as  "Elm  Park".  Close 
to  its  site,  now  stands  the  elegant  "St.  Agnes"  Chapel  of  Trinity 
Parish. 


NORTH  REFORMED  DUTCH  CHURCH, 
Corner  of  William  and  Pulton  Streets. 


This  edifice  was  built  by  the  Consistory  of  the  Protestant 
Dutch  Church  of  the  City  of  New  York,  the  corner  stone  being  laid 
on  the  2nd  July,  1767,  by  Isaac  Roosevelt,  an  elder  of  the  church 
and  chairman  of  the  building  committee,  and  the  dedication  sermon 
being  preached  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Laidlie  on  the  25th  May,  1769. 

The  church  flourished  and  the  ministry  was  prosecuted  in  har- 
mony and  success.  At  the  time  however  the  political  agitation  ex- 
isted which  soon  ripened  in  the  Revolutionary  contest. 

Not  long  after  the  breaking  out  of  the  War,  the  British  gained 
possession  of  the  city,  and  those  who  were  favorable  to  the  American 
cause,  with  their  families  sought  refuge  and  sojourned  during  the 
war  in  different  places  in  the  country.    With  almost  solitary  excep- 
tions the  congregation  was  strongly  united  in  the  cause  of  Independ- 
ence and  was  scattered  around.     During  the  occupation  of  the  city  by 
the  British,  the  building  was  used  by  them  as  an  hospital  and  for 
storage,  the  lower  part  being  stripped  of  its  pews,  pulpit,  &c . ,  and 
its  walls  and  general  interior  much  defaced.     After  peace  was  con- 
cluded the  building  was  repaired  and  placed  in  a  neat  and  proper 
condition  and  in  December,  1784,  was  again  opened  for  Divine  ser- 
vices which  were  regularly  continued  there  for  many  years  until  with 
the  scattering  of  the  members  of  its  congregation,  owing  to  their 
removal  uptown,  the  old  edifice  was  finally  closed  and  then  demolish- 
ed in  1875. 


THE  RESIDENCE  OP  GOVERNOR  GEORGE  CLINTON 
PEARL  STREET,  OPPOSITE  CEDAR,  AND  WASHINGTON'S 
HEADQUARTERS  ON  ASSUMING  THE  COMMAND  CP  THE  ARMY  IN  NEW  YORK. 

Upon  General  Washington  arriving  in  New  York  on  April  14,  1776, 
to  assume  the  command  of  the  Army,  he  made  his  headquarters  at  the 
residence  of  Governor  George  Clinton,   in  Queen  Street,   (now  Pearl) 
at  present  covered  by  the  buildings  No.  178  and  180  Pearl  St.  It 
had  been  built  in  1695  by  Col.  Abraham  de  Peyster,   (the  eldest  son 
of  Johannes  de  Peyster)  who  during  his  lifetime  held  many  official 
positions,  amongst  others,  Mayor  of  New  York,  Chief  Justice  of  the 
Province,  Sec.     Built  of  brick,  stuccoed  and  roofed  with  tiles,  it 
was  one  of  the  most  palatial  edifices  in  the  city.     The  main  build- 
ing was  three  stories  high,  59  feet  front,  nearly  80  feet  deep,  the 
principal  rooms  being  extremely  large,   some  of  them  40  feet  deep. 
The  front  had  a  wide  entrance,  with  a  great  double  door  in  the  cen- 
ter, projecting  over  which  was  a  broad  balcony  with  double  arched 
windows.     Prom  this  balcony,  for  nearly  a  century,  the  military  re- 
views were  held  by  the  Colonial  Governors.     The  decorations  of  the 
interior  of  the  house,  were  magnificent,  and  the  furniture,  all  of 
which  was  imported,  was  elegant,  and  very  costly.     A  stable  and 
coach  house  were  in  the  rear  of  the  house.     General  Washington  re- 
mained at  the  house  until  summoned  to  visit  Congress  at  Philadelphia 
toward  the  end  of  May.     From  the  year  1826  to  1856  it  was  used,  some- 
what changed  from  its  original  character,  as  a  hotel,  known  as  "The 
United  States",  kept  by  T.  B.  Redmond,  and  later  for  various  busi- 
ness purposes,  until  finally  demolished  in  1856. 


THE  OLD  BRIDEWELL. 


This  building  stood  in  the  park,  on  the  west  side  of  the  City 
Hall.     It  was  erected  in  1775,  as  the  inscription  on  the  corner 
stone  now  in  possession  of  the  New  York  Historical  Society,  indi- 
cates.    This  stone  was  laid  with  due  ceremony,  by  the  Mayor,  White- 
head Hicks,  who  had  held  that  office  for  ten  consecutive  years. 

The  building  was  built  of  dark  grey  stone,  two  stories  high, 
besides  the  basement,  with  a  pediment  in  the  front  and  in  the  rear, 
which  were  carried  up  a  story  higher.     The  centre  apartments  were 
allotted  to  the  keeper  and  his  deputies.    On  the  first  floor  on  the 
right,  there  was  an  apartment  called  the  Long  Room,  and  on  the  left 
a  similar  apartment,  on  the  second  floor  there  were  two  wards,  the 
one  called  the  Upper  Hall  and  the  other  the  Chain  Room.     The  Upper 
Hall  was  appropriated  to  the  higher  class  of  convicts. 

But  the  "Old  Bridewell"  derives  its  principal  interest  from  its 
being  used  by  the  British,  during  the  Revolution,  as  a  place  of  con- 
finement of  American  Soldiers  who  were  so  unfortunate  as  to  be  taken 
prisoners.    Here  as  in  all  those  places  used  for  that  purpose  in 
this  city,  cruelty,  misery  and  starvation  agonized  its  helpless  vic- 
tims.    The  patriot  soldier  immured  within  these  walls,  saw  nothing 
before  him,  but  the  horrid  prospect  of  a  long,  protracted,  and  aggra- 
vated death. 

The  old  building  was  demolished  in  1838  and  became  quite  a 
stone  quarry  for  the  builder  then  engaged  in  erecting. the  "Tombs"  in 
Centre  Street. 


THE  GOVERNMENT  HOUSE . 


The  annexed  view  is  a  correct  representation  of  the  Government 
House,  taken  from  a  large  lithographic  print,  handsomely  got  up  and 
colored,  published  by  Mr .H .R.Robinson,  No.  142  Nassau  Street,  in  1848. 

The  original  drawing  from  which  Mr.  Robinson's  engraving  was 
taken,  was  made  by  Milbourne,  an  English  artist,  in  1797.  He  was 
from  London  in  1792,  and  was  scene  painter  for  the  Park  Theatre. 

The  Government  House  was  a  handsome  brick  edifice,  situated  at 
the  foot  of  Broadway,  fronting  the  Rowling  Green.     It  occupied  the 
grounds  where  formerly  the  Dutch  and  English  "Forts,  and  subsequently 
the  Revolutionary  works,  were  located,  the  foundations  of  the  house 
being  built  of  the  stones  from  the  walls  of  the  Old  Ports,  which  had 
just  been  levelled. 

It  was  erected  in  179C,  at  the  expense  of  the  State  of  New 
York,  and  was  intended  for  the  residence  of  President  Washington, 
and  that  of  all  future  Presidents.     The  seat  of  Government,  however, 
being  removed  to  Philadelphia,  it  was  appropriated  for  a  number  of 
years  to  the  uses  of  the  Governors  of  the  State,  George  Clinton  and 
John  Jay,  while  holding  the  Executive  office. 

Prom  1799  until  1815,  it  was  used  for  the  Custom  House  of  this 

port . 

In  1815  the  building  was  taken  down,  and  the  site  sold  for 
building  lots,  by  order  of  the  Common  Council,  the  Corporation  hav- 
ing adopted  measures  for  purchasing  the  building  and  site  in  18C5- 
The  lots  sold  for  $164,783,  and  produced  a  net  gain  to  the  City  of 
over  $80,000,  which  was  owing  to  the  good  management  of  the  late 
Thomas  R.  Mercein,  who  was  then  Comptroller. 


RICHMOND  HILL  MANSION. 


This  Mansion  built  in  1760  on  a  hill  of  considerable  elevation 
by  Mayor  Mortier,  an  English  officer,  stood  at  what  is  now  the  Cor- 
ner of  Varick  and  Charlton  Streets.     It  was  occupied  by  Washington 
and  his  family  from  May  until  June  1776,  whence  he  removed  his  head- 
quarters to  the  Roger  Morris  House.     It  was  then  occupied  during  the 
War,  by  British  officers,  Sir  Guy  Carlton,  Lord  Dorchester,  and 
other  distinguished  Noblemen.     During  the  first  year  of  the  Govern- 
ment under  the  Constitution  Vice  President  Adams  occupied  the  House 
and  later,  for  10  years,  Colonel  Aaron  Burr  -  eminent  men  and  women 
of  the  old  World  and  the  New,  Tallyrand,  Volney,  Louis  Phillipe, 
Senators,  Ambassadors  and  Authors,  enjoyed  his  hospitality  -  at  that 
time  it  was  a  beautiful  spot.     In  front  there  was  nothing  to  ob- 
struct the  view  of  the  Hudson.     To  the  right  fertile  meadows  stretch- 
ed up  towards  the  little  hamlet  of  Greenwich  Village. 

About  the  year  1817,  in  order  to  conform  to  the  grade  of  sur- 
rounding streets,  the  old  building  was  undermined  and  carefully  low- 
ered to  the  desired  grade.     In  the  year  1834  it  was  altered  and  con- 
verted into  a  theatre  known  as  the  "Richmond  Hill"  and  a  few  years 
later  it  was  again  changed  and  called  the  "Tivoli  Gardens"  and  con- 
certs given  for  a  short  time.     About  the  year  1847  it  was  rebuilt 
again  and  named,  "The  Greenwich"  and  in  1849  the  old  building  disap- 
peared. 


COL.  ROGER  MORRIS'  HOUSE. 


The  Roger  Morris  House  (known  as  the  Juroel  Mansion)  built  of 
bricks  brought  from  Holland,  was  erected  in  1758  on  the  Heights  that 
overlook  Harlem  River,  a  little  below  the  High  Bridge. 

It  was  occupied  by  General  Washington  as  his  headquarters  on 
the  day  of  the  victory  at  Harlem  Plains,  Sept.  16th,  1776.     It  was 
confiscated  from  the  Loyalist  owner  after  the  Revolution,  purchased 
by  John  Jacob  Astor,  who  sold  it  to  Stephen  Jumel,  whose  widow  mar- 
ried Aaron  Burr,  who  left  her,  in  disgust,  she  living  there  for 
years  alone,  a  terror  to  her  servants,  and  shunned  by  her  neighbors. 

It  was  while  General  Washington  made  his  brief  sojourn  at  the 
Mansion  that  he  had  his  attention  called  to  Alexander  Hamilton. 
During  his  inspection  of  the  works  thrown  up  at  Harlem  for  the  pro- 
tection of  his  army,  Washington  was  struck  by  the  skill  displayed  in 
the  arrangement  and  disposition  of  a  certain  fort  which  was  in 
charge  of    a  young  captain  of  artillery,  and,  on  making  inquiries, 
it  turned  out  that  the  name  of  the  officer  in  question  was  Alexander 
Hamilton  (then  a  youth  of  20)  of  whom  General  Greene  had  previously 
spoken  to  his  superior  in  terms  of  high  praise. 

Washington  at  once  sought  the  acquaintance  of  the  youth  and 
there  and  then  the  friendship  began  which  linked  their  lives  and 
their  fame  together. 

In  later  years  it  has  been  occupied  by  various  families,  and 
at  present  (1896)   is  the  residence  of  General  Ferdinand  P.  Earle, 
who  purchased  the  property  in  1894,  the  old  house  still  being  in  a 
fine  state  of  preservation. 


FRAUNUES  TAVERN.  Cor  of  BROAD  &PEARL  STREETS. 

WasTt/jigittmj  puarlerj  JVayaniher  J7&3._  and.  the  house  in  which  he  took  leave 


FRAUNCE'S  TAVERN . 


Praunce's  Tavern,  corner  of  Broad  ant!  Dock  (Pearl)  Streets, 
Washington's  quarters  on  the  evacuation  of  the  city  by  the  British 
troops  on  Nov.   25,  1733,  was  erected  probably  about  1730,  being  the 
family  homestead  of  Etienne  (Stephen)   De  Lancey,  built  on  land  con- 
veyed to  him  by  his  father-in-law,  Hon.  Stephanus  Van  Cortlandt.  It 
was  purchased  by  Samuel  Praunces,  of  French  extraction,  and  from  his 
swarthy  complexion  familiarly  called  "Black  Swan",  in  1762  for  L2000 
provincial  currency  and  opened  as  a  tavern  under  the  name  of  "Queen 
Charlotte". 

Societies  met  here  and  in  one  of  the  great  rooms  in  the  second 
story  the  "Chamber  of  Commerce"  held  its  monthly  meetings  for  many 
years.     During  the  troubles  which  preceded  the  Revolution  it  appears 
to  have  been  the  resort  of  both  Whigs  and  Loyalists,  political  af- 
fairs not  having  sufficient  power  to  sever  the  social  ties  of  those 
whose  custom  it  was  to  assemble  there  and  discuss  Praunce's  "Ma- 
deira", a  wine  the  excellent  quality  of  which  his    cellar   stood  pro- 
verbial.    A  social  club,  which  passed  Saturday  evenings  there  during 
the  Winter,  and  at  their  Club  House  on  Kip's  Bay  during  the  Summer, 
was  composed  of  the  following  gentlemen: 

John  Jay  Leonard  Lispenard 

Gouverneur  Morris         Anthony  Lispenard 
Robt.  R.  Livingston.     Francis  Lewis 

John  Watts 
Henry  Kelly 
Richd.  Harrison 
John  Hay 

Peter  Van  Schaack 
Daniel  Ludlow 


Egbert  Benson. 
Morgan  Lewis. 
Gulian  Verplanck 
John  Livingston 
Henry  Livingston 
James  Seagrove 


Dr.  S.  Bard 
George  Ludlow 
William  Ludlow 
William  Imlay 
Edward  Goold 
John  Reade 
J.  Stevens 
Stephen  Rapelye 
John  Moore . 


The  War  coming  on  the  members  of  the  Club  dispersed  in  December 
1775  and  never  afterwards  assembled.     While  t?ie  city  was  in  posses- 
sion of  the  British  nothing  of  interest  seems  to  have  transpired 
within  the  house.     On  the  25th  Nov.  1733,  the  date  of  the  Evacuation 
of  the  city  by  the  British,  and  the  triumphal  entry  of  Washington 
and  the  American  Army,  Washington  repaired  to  this  tavern  and  there 
during  the  afternoon  Governor  Clinton  gave  a  public  dinner  to  the 
officers  of  the  Army.     A  few  days  later,  on  Dec.  4th,  occurred  Wash- 
ington's immortal  farewell  to  his  officers.     Sam  Fraunces  kept  the 
house  until  1785  when  he  sold  it  and  on  the  election  of  Washington 
to  the  Presidency  he  was  appointed  steward  to  the  Presidential  es- 
tablishment . 

Two  stories  have  been  added  to  the  building  since  it  was  first 
erected,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  sketch.     At  this  date  (1894)   it  is 
still  standing,  the  Society  of  the  "Sons  of  the  Revolution"  holding 
their  business  meetings  there. 


FRAUNCE'S  TAVERN . 
Washington  taking  leave  of  his  officers. 


On  Thursday,  December  4,  1783,   the  principal  officers  of  the 
Array  assembled  at  Fraunce's  Tavern  to  take  a  final  leave  of  their 
beloved  Chief.     Revd  Mr.  Weerns,  formerly  Rector  of  Mount  Vernon  par- 
ish,  in  his  "Life  of  George  Washington"  describes  the  scene  as  fol- 
lows:    "About  half  after  twelve  the  general  entered  the  room  where 
an  elegant  collation  was  spread,  but  none  tasted  it.  Conversation 
was  attempted  but  it  failed.     As  the  clock  struck  one,   the  general 
went  to  the  sideboard  and  filling  out  some  wine,  turned  to  his  offic- 
ers and  begged  they  would  join  him  in  a  glass.     Then,  with  a  look  of 
sorrow  and  a  faltering  voice,  he  said,   "Well,  my  brave  brothers  in 
arms  we  part  -  perhaps  to  meet  in  this  life  no  more  and  now  I  pray 
God  to  take  you  all  in  his  holy  keeping  and  render  your  latter  days 
as  prosperous  as  the  past  has  been  glorious."     Soon  as  they  had 
drunk,  he  beckoned  to  General  Knox  who  approached  and  pressed  his 
hand  in  tears  of  delicious  silence.     The  officers  all  followed  his 
example,  while  manly  cheeks,  swollen  with  grief,  bespoke  sensations 
too  strong  for  utterance." 

Washington  soon  left  the  room  and  passing  through  a  corps  of 
light  infantry,  he  walked  in  silence  to  Whitehall  followed  by  a  vast 
procession,  and  at  two  o'clock  entered  a  barge,  magnificently  decor- 
ated,  to  proceed  to  Paulus  Hook,  on  the  New  Jersey  shore,  on  his  way 
to  Mount  Vernon. 


THE  BCWLING  GREEN. 


The  Bowling  Green  was  the  first  public  Park  established.  In 
March,  1733,   it  was  resolved  by  the  Common  Council,   that  the  piece 
of  land  lying  at  the  lower  end  of  Broadway,  fronting  the  fort,  be 
leased,  in  order  to  be  enclosed  to  make  a  Bowling  Green,  with  walks 
therein,  for  the  beauty  and  ornament  of  the  street,  as  well  as  for 
the  recreation  of  the  inhabitants,  leaving  the  street,  on  each  side, 
fifty  feet  wide,  and  in  the  following  year  it  was  resolved  that  the 
Green,  be  leased  to  Frederick  Philip se,  John  Chambers,  and  John 
Roosevelt,  for  ten  years,  for  a  bowling  green  only.     Previous  to  the 
Revolution,   the  Colonial  Assembly  resolved  to  procure  from  England, 
a  statue  of  the  king,   (George  III).     In  177C  the  statue  arrived 
here,  and  was  erected  in  the  Green.     The  King  was  extremely  unpopu- 
lar and  although  riots  were  of  frequent  occurrence,  no  opposition 
seems  to  have  been  made  to  the  erection  of  the  statue.     In  May  1771 
the  Common  Council  resolved  that,   "Whereas  the  General  Assembly  have 
been  at  great  expense  in  bringing  from  England  a  statue  of  his  Ma- 
jesty and  erecting  it  on  the  Bowling  Green,  and  unless  said  Green  be 
fenced  in,   it  will  become  the  receptacle  of  the  filth  and  dirt  from 
the  neighborhood,   it  is  ordered  that  an  iron  railing  be  erected 
around  the  Green,  at  an  expense  of  eight  hundred  pounds." 

At  the  beginning  of  the  war,  the  statue,  which  was  of  lead,  was 
demolished  and  run  into  bullets,   for  the  use  of  the  American  forces. 

About  1840  a  structure  of  rough  rock,   over  the  sides  of  which 
flowed  a  stream  of  water  from  a  croton  pipe,  was  erected  within  the 
Green,  but  was  removed  somewhere  in  the  sixties  or  seventies. 


BULLS  HEAD   IN  THE  BOWERY, 

-//  B,iyas-d  and.  /•„„,,,  Sis  Canal  St  .V  }'//<« 


"BULLS  HEAD",   in  the  Bowery 
between  Bayard  and  Pump  (now  Canal  St.) 
1783 


"Bull's  Head  Tavern"  with  its  cattle  market  for  150  years,  and 
in  various  locations,  has  been  one  of  the  institutions  of  the  city. 

In  the  early  days  the  live-stock  market  adjoined  Trinity  Church 
yard.     Years  afterward  a  drovers  Inn  was  built  at  the  gates  of  the 
city  on  the  present  site  of  the  Astor  House,  where  from  172C  till 
174C,  Adam  Van  Der  Bergh,  a  genial  host,  discussed  Cattle  and  Small 
Ale  with  the  drovers.     "Bull's  Plead  in  the  Bowery",  as  shown  in  the 
engraving,  with  Stephen  Carpenter  as  host,  was  the  next  site,  stand- 
ing where  the  Old  Bowery  (now  Thalia)  Theatre  stands.     It  was  the 
headquarters  for  drovers  and  horse  traders  who  came  from  the  country 
to  attend  the  cattle  market.     Bull  and  bear  baiting  and  dog  fights 
were  common,  the  spectacle  usually  taking  place  in  or  near  the  pub- 
lic slaughter  house.     Here  Daniel  Drew,  a  farmer's  son  of  Putnam 
County,  born  July  29,  1797,  when  about  19  years  of  age,  first  brought 
a  few  lambs  to  market,  guiding  his  little  flock  down  the  Bowery, 
himself  barefooted  and  poorly  clad.    He  in  time  became  proprietor  of 
the  Tavern  and  there  laid  the  foundation  of  the  great  fortune  which 
he  afterward  acquired  in  Wall  Street. 

In  1825  "The  Bull's  Head"  was  removed  from  its  old  site  to  a 
new  building  erected  for  the  purpose  at  Third  Avenue  and  24th  Street 
while  two  blocks  of  ground  were  purchased  in  24th  Street  between 
Third  and  Lexington  Avenues  and  converted  into  cattle  yards. 


THE  FIRST  PRESIDENTIAL  MANSION . 
No.  1  Cherry  St. 


The  site  of  this  building,  now  in  the  shadow  of  the  big  stone 
arches  of  the  Brooklyn  Bridge,  was  at  the  junction  of  Cherry  and 
Pearl  Streets  on  Franklin  Square  in  former  times  known  as  "Cherry 
Hill".     The  Mansion,  one  of  the  finest  in  the  city,  was  erected 
about  1770  by  Walter  Franklin,  one  of  the  richest  merchants  of  his 
time.    Upon  his  death  it  became  the  property  of  Samuel  Osgood, 
through  his  marriage  with  the  widow  of  Mr.  Franklin.    Upon  President 
elect  Washington  coming  to  New  York  to  reside,  the  building  was  se- 
lected as  his  residence,  Mr.  Osgood,  who  became  the  First  Postmaster 
General  of  the  United  States,  removing  elsewhere  that  it  might  be 
properly  repaired  and  furnished,  Congress  having,  it  is  said,  paid 
$8,000  for  the  work.     Arriving  in  the  city  on  April  23d,  1789,  one 
week  before  his  inauguration,  he  was  escorted  to  the  Mansion  by  the 
Governor,  State  and  Municipal  officers,  Foreign  Ambassadors,  and  a 
grand  procession  through  Queen  St.,  now  Pearl  St.     In  1790  the  resi- 
dence proving  inconvenient  on  account  of  the  "great  distance  out  of 
town",  and  as  Mr.  Osgood,  the  owner  and  Postmaster  General,  desired 
to  return  to  it,  having  lived  at  his  country  seat,  3  miles  to  the 
North,  during  the  interim,  the  President  arranged  for  removal  to  the 
McComb  Mansion  in  Broadway,  a  little  below  Trinity  Church,  and  which 
removal  was  accordingly  made  on  Feby.  23rd,  1790.     In  the  latter 
years  the  old  building  was  used  for  various  business  purposes  and 
was  finally  taken  down  in  1856. 


LISP ENARD • 3  MEADOWS . 


This  view  represents  a  rural  picture  of  that  part  of  our  city, 
in  the  vicinity  of  the  present  foot  of  Canal  Street,  at  a  period 
about  the  time  of  the  Revolutionary  war.     A  large  pond,  commonly 
called  the  Collect,  occupied  a  considerable  portion  of  the  present 
neighborhood  of  the  Halls  of  Justice,   in  Centre  Street.     Prom  this 
pond,  extended  toward  the  North  River,  a  marsh,  covering  a  surface 
of  seventy  acres,  originally  covered  by  stunted  bushes,  and  filled 
with  swamp  rubbish  and  the  rotten  growth  of  ages.     It  was  justly 
considered  the  pest  and  plague  of  the  outskirts  of  the  city;  cattle 
straying  into  it  were  sometimes  "swamped"  in  its  muddy  holes,  so 
that  it  was  necessary  to  fence  it  around.     But  by  far  the  most  seri- 
ous complaint  against  the  nuisance  was  its  alleged  unwholesome  ef- 
fect upon  residents  in  the  vicinity,  who  were  great  sufferers  from 
the  fever  and  ague.     These  circumstances  induced  the  government,  in 
the  year  1732,   to  grant  the  fee  of  the  "Swamp"  to  Mr.  Anthony  Rut- 
gers, residing  near  the  site  of  the  old  New  York  Hospital,  upon  con- 
dition that  he  should  clear  and  drain  it,  and  pay  a  moderate  quit- 
rent.     We  see  the  western  end  of  the  swamp,  near  the  North  River,  a 
number  of  years  subsequent  to  that  last  spoken  of.     The  bushes  were 
cleared  off  and  a  large  drain  cut  through  the  centre  of  the  swamp, 
drawing  its  waters  into  the  North  River. 

Upon  the  hill,  among  the  trees,  is  the  residence  of  Mr.  Lispe- 
nard,  not  discoverable  through  the  foliage.     The  first  of  the  family 
named  Anthony  Lispenard,  removed  to  this  city  from  Albany,  about  the 
year  1684.     He  died  in  the  year  1696,  leaving  three  children.  An- 
thony, Margaret  and  Abigail.     His  wife,  Abigail,  also  survived  him. 
The  son,  Anthony,  died  in  1755,  at  an  advanced  age,  leaving  five 
children,  Leonard,  David,  Magdalena,  Abigail  and  Mary.     Leonard  Lis- 
penard became  the  proprietor  of  the  farm  a  part  of  which  is  repre- 
sented in  the  engraving.    He  was  a  prominent  man  in  public  affairs 
in  this  city  for  many  years. 

On  the  right,  or  northerly  side  of  the  swamp,  the  roof  of  a 
dwelling  is  seen,  which  was  known  as  the  Brannon  property.     A  public 
garden  and  place  of  resort  was  here  established,  known  as  Brannon 
Gardens.     When  streets  were  afterward  laid  out  through  the  property, 
one  of  them  was  known  as  Brannon  Street. 


THE  "KOLCH"  or  "KALCH-HOOK"  POND. 


Where  the  Tombs"  on  Centre  Street,  formerly  Collect  Street, 
now  stands,  there  was  in  the  early  Dutch  days  a  lovely  pond,  sur- 
rounded by  high  hills,  called  the  "Kolch"  (translated  from  the  Dutch 
"Shell  Point")  or  "Kalch  Hook"  Pond  and  later  the  "Collect"  and 
Fresh  Water  Pond,  containing  about  46  acres,  very  deep,  and  of  un- 
usual purity.     Prom  it  ran  a  little  stream  into  the  East  River, 
while  towards  the  North  River  stretched  a  marsh,  covering  several 
acres,  which  in  about  18C0,  it  was  found  necessary  to  drain  to  and 
through  Canal  Street  to  the  River,  a  stone  bridge  at  Broadway  and 
Canal  Street  being  built  across  the  drain.     The  Pond  was  famous  for 
its  fish,  the  whole  spot  and  its  surroundings  being  a  favorite  re- 
sort for  pleasure  seekers.     In  1789  it  was  proposed  to  make  a  public 
park  of  the  beautiful  place,  but  the  scheme  came  to  naught  on  the 
ground  that  New  York  would  never  grow  within  accessible  distance  of 
the  region.     In  1796  the  pond  was  the  scene  of  the  first  trial  of  a 
steamboat  with  a  screw  propeller,  the  invention  of  John  Pitch.  The 
habitable  portion  of  the  city  gradually  creeping  up,  schemes  were 
discussed  for  disposing  of  the  Pond,  resulting  in  the  decision  to 
fill  it  in  and  grade  the  grounds  about  it,  which  work,  about  1808, 
was  begun,  continuing  slowly  until  finally  the  whole  of  it  was  ob- 
literated, the  ground  levelled,  streets  laid  out  and  every  vestige 
of  the  old  locality  disappearing,  the  earth  from  the  hills  being 
taken  to  fill  in  the  pond.    As  above  mentioned  "The  Tombs"  begun  in 
1836  and  completed  in  1838,  now  stands  about  where  the  centre  of  the 
old  pond  was. 


THE  CITY  HALL 
or  "Federal  Hall"  Wall  Street. 


The  City  Hall,  erected  in  17C0, called  after  1789  "Federal  Hall" 
was  situated  at  the  head  of  Broad  Street,  fronting  on  Wall  Street, 
where  the  U.  S.  Sub-Treasury  now  stands.        In  it  were  held  the  Ses- 
sions of  the  Common  Council,   the  Provincial  Assembly,   the  Supreme 
Court,  and  the  Mayor  and  Admiralty  Courts;     it  was  also  the  place  of 
elections.        The  British,  while  they  occupied  the  city  during  the 
War,  used  it  as  the  place  of  the  main  guard,  at  the  same  time  plun- 
dering the  Public  Library  contained  there.     It  continued  with  occas- 
sional repairs  and  alterations  until  after  the  war  and  the  assembling 
of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  in  this  city  in  1787  and  1789, 
preceding  which  it  was  altered  and  enlarged  for  their  accommodation. 
From  the  portico  of  the  second  story,   facing  Broad  Street,  General 
Washington  was  inaugurated  President.        The  seat  of  the  National 
Government  being  moved  to  Philadelphia,  it  was  again  altered  to  re- 
ceive the  Courts  and  the  Legislature  of  the  State  and  the  latter 
held  their  Sessions  there  until  the  Capitol  was  established  at  Al- 
bany in  1797.       It  was  demolished  about  1813,  the  new  City  Hal),  in 
the  Park  having  been  finished  and  the  site  was  divided  up  into  lots 
and  sold  at  about  an  average  of  $8,000,  per  lot.     Plain  brick  build- 
ings were  erected  on  the  site,  one  of  which,  on  the  corner  of  Nassau 
Street  was  occupied  for  some  years  as  a  book  store  and  reading  room 
and  afterwards  as  the  Custom  House.       This  was  demolished  in  1834 
when  the  present  building  was  begun,  being  completed  in  1841,  and 
used  as  Custom  House  until  1862  and  since  then  as  the  U.  S.  Sub- 
Treasury. 


(f-:j  -y— ,    .  <**•*;    !        I         |gy  -jjjj^ 


First  President 


of  ike>  irnited  Watts,  oi*  tiw  30  *  ^ 

H.  n.  Ko6insjn,£it&.  3 1. Pari  ifo». 


FEDERAL  HALL 
INAUGURATION  OP  GEORGE  WASHINGTON. 


On  a  sunshiny  day  in  April.  1789,  George  Washington,  President- 
elect of  the  United  States  by  the  unanimous  voice  of  the  people, 
stood  on  a  balcony  in  front  of  the  Senate  Chamber  in  the  old  Federal 
Hall  on  Wall  Street,  to  take  the  oath  of  office.      An  immense  multi- 
tude filled  the  streets  and  the  windows  and  roofs  of  the  adjoining 
houses.      Clad  in  a  suit  of  dark  brown  cloth  of  American  manufac- 
ture, with  his  hair  powdered,  and  with  white  silk  stockings,  silver 
shoe  buckles  and  steel  hilted  dress  sword,  the  hero  who  had  led  the 
colonies  to  their  Independence  came  modestly  forward  to  take  up  the 
burdens  that  peace  had  brought.      Profound  silence  fell  upon  the 
multitude  as  Washington  responded  solemnly  to  the  reading  of  the 
oath  of  office  "I  swear  -  so  help  me  God".       Then,  amid  cheers, the 
display  of  flags,  and  the  ringing  of  all  the  bells  in  the  city, our 
first  President  turned  to  face  the  duties  his  countrymen  had  impos- 
ed upon  him. 


Hil£[L'»'DiS)l£tei-fl  CO  (5)  JO  §  (M^g  > 

situated  on  the  Block, hounded  by  Montgomery  S!  Quito  ^l  Cherry  S1*  Monroev 


THE  BELVEDERE  CLUB  HOUSE. 


The  Belvedere  Club  House  was  situated  on  the  banks  of  the  East 
River  on  the  block  now  bounded  by  Montgomery,  Clinton,  Cherry  and 
Munroe  Streets.     It  was  built  in  the  year  1792,  by  thirty-three  gen- 
tlemen, of  whom  the  Belvedere  Club  was  composed.     The  beauty  of  the 
situation  induced  them  to  extend  their  plan  beyond  their  first  in- 
tentions, which  were  merely  a  couple  of  rooms  for  the  use  of  their 
Club;     and  they  erected  the  building  as  well  to  answer  the  purposes 
of  a  public  hotel  and  tavern,  as  for  their  own  accommodation.  It 
continued  in  its  original  state  and  appearance  until  about  the  year 
1820,  when  in  order  to  keep  pace  with  the  improvements  rapidly  ex- 
tending in  that  section  of  the  city  it  was  removed,  and  the  eleva- 
tion upon  which  it  had  its  foundation  (being  something  like  60  or  70 
feet  higher  than  at  present)  made  to  conform  to  the  grade  of  the  ad- 
jacent streets. 

It  took  its  name  from  a  wealthy  nobleman,  and  was  one  of  the 
most  popular  places  of  resort  for  convivial  amusements  and  other  en- 
tertainments that  the  city  afforded,  and  was  well  sustained  by  many 
of  the  most  prominent  individuals  of  the  times. 

The  proprietors  and  members  of  the  Club  in  1794  were: 

Mr.  John  Atkinson  Mr.  Thomas  Marston  Mr. Augustus  Van  Horne 

w  Babcock  "  Gulian  Ludlow  »  Lawrence  Yates 

"  Barretto  "  McVickar  Colonel  Walker 

■  William  Bell  ■  Pitcairn  Mr.  Corp 

"  James  Constable  "  Joseph  Searight        "  Boyle 

"  Durie  "  Waldo  "    Thomas  White 

General  Pish  "  Reedy  "    James  McEvers 

Mr.  Joseph  Gouverneur  "  William  Rogers  "    John  Shaw 

"  Henderson  »  Carlile  Pollock        "    James  Seton 

"  Robert  Kemble  »  J.   C.  Hoffman  "    Henry  Sadler. 


COL.   SMITH'S  HOUSE, 
61st  St.  and  East  River. 


This  old  house  still  standing  (1897)  at  the  foot  of  61st  St. 
and  East  River,  on  a  terrace  some  10  to  15  feet  above  the  level  of 
the  Street,  was  originally  built  as  a  summer  residence  in  1799  by 
Col.  Wm.  S.  Smith,  a  son-in-law  of  John  Adams,  Vice  President  of  the 
United  States,  he  having  married  the  latter* s  only  daughter.  A 
large  mansion  consisting  of  two  huge  wings  joined  together  by  a  por- 
tico in  front  and  an  extension  in  the  rear,  the  erection  of  which 
together  with  an  unfortunate  speculation  in  East  River  Real  Estate 
having  bankrupted  the  owner  before  his  work  was  completed.  Records 
show  that  his  possession  of  the  30  acres  which  composed  the  place 
and  which  he  had  purchased  from  Peter  Prau  Van  Zandt,  was  very 
brief.     It  had  a  local  designation  of  "Smith's  Folly"  by  which  it 
was  known  for  years. 

Upon  the  failure  of  Col.  Smith,  it  was  sold  and  passed  out  of 
his  hands,  later  on  being  used  as  a  young  ladies  boarding  school, 
and  still  later  as  a  well  known  roadhouse  or  tavern  kept  by  a  Mr. 
Hart.     The  proprietor  dying  sometime  during  the  thirties  it  was  pur- 
chased by  a  Mr.  Towle  in  whose  family  it  has  remained  ever  since, 
some  of  his  descendants  now  (1897)  occupying  i.t  and  keeping  it  in  a 
good  state  of  preservation.     It  is  about  the  last  remaining  relic  of 
the  time  when  the  upper  eastern  shore  had  a  line  of  fine  Mansions 
and  Homesteads,  whose  owners  names  were  prominent  in  the  City's 
early  history. 


DUANE- STREET  CHUB 


AND  PARSONAGE 


THE  BANK  OF  NEW  YORK,  I79S. 


VLEW  OF  OLI>  BUILD IXdS  IN  WILLIAM  STREET 

/ookiruf  from  ct' Liberty  St.  Unvu7'*.£$ ftfaidten.  l*<i7ie _h1Y  f&OO 


OLD  BUILDINGS  IN  WILLIAM  STRKKT. 


This  view  represents  the  buildings  as  they  appeared  about  the 
year  1800  fronting  William  Street,  on  the  west  side,  looking  from 
the  corner  of  Liberty  Street  towards  Maiden  Lane.       The  first  house 
on  the  left  hand,  like  most  of  the  buildings  of  that  day,  had  the 
front  door  divided,  in  order  to  open  the  upper  part  by  itself  if 
required.        The  windows  of  this  house  have  been  "modernized",  the 
old  sashes,  which  still  remained  on  the  premises  being  of  lead, with 
very  small-sized  diamond  shaped  lights,  and  much  neater  than  those 
which  superseded  them.       The  jamb  around  the  fire-place  was  faced 
with  numerous  earthen  tiles, of  enamelled  blue,  each  representing 
some  passage  in  the  New  Testament,  such  as  the  Prodigal,  &c .  These, 
with  the  sashes,  were  doubtless  imported  from  Holland.     In  the  cel- 
lar was  a  spring  of  pure  water,  which  from  its  having  no  outlet 
caused  much  trouble.        This  was  probably  one  of  the  many  which 
supplied  the  beautiful  little  stream  that  had  formerly  coursed  its 
way  down  what  is  now  Maiden  Lane,   to  the  river.     At  this  period, 
William  Street  from  Stone  to  Fulton  Street  was  the  principal  street 
for  retail  business,  and  consequently  the  most  fashionable  prome- 
nade.     Most  of  the  sidewalks  were  laid  with  brick,  with  "wooden 
curb  stones".       The  whole  of  the  property  above  named,  including 
two  lots  on  Liberty  Street,  and  the  same  on  Maiden  Lane,  was  sold  a 
few  years  previous  to  1800  for  a  mere  trifle,   in  consequence  of  a 
defect  in  the  title.     No  one  coming  forward  to  claim  it;   the  title 
was  probably  due  to  some  family  in  Holland,  who  never  knew  of  its 
exi  stence . 


THE  BRICK  MEETING  HOUSE,  LOOKING  SOUTH . 
ST.  PAUL'S  IN  THE  DISTANCE,  1800. 


The  view  as  drawn  in  1800,  shows  the  Old  Brick  Meeting  House, 
built  in  1767  and  demolished  in  1856,  on  the  exact  site  of  which  now 
stands  the  "N.  Y.  Times"  fine  building.     On  the  right  is  seen  St. 
Paul's  Chapel,  the  oldest  Church  building  now  standing  in  the  city, 
the  foundation  stone  of  which  was  laid  on  Monday,  May  14th,  1764,  it 
first  being  opened  and  dedicated  with  elaborate  religious  and  civil 
ceremonies  on  Thursday,  October  30th,  1776,  the  steeple,  however, 
not  being  completed  until  1794.     The  left  portion  of  the  double 
house  Just  this  side  of  "St.  Paul's",  was  in  1776  the  residence  of 
Walter  Rutherford,  whose  wife  was  Lord  Stirling's  sister,  the  right 
portion  being  the  residence  of  William  Axtell,  who,  prior  to  the 
War  was  one  of  the  Governor's  Counsel  and  whose  wife  was  the 
daughter  of  Abraham  De  Peyster,  the  Treasurer.    He  had  favored  the 
American  Cause  at  the  start,  but  when  his  Estate    came  into  the  pow- 
er of  the  conquerors,  his  sentiments  changed  and  he  became  a  Loyal- 
ist of  the  first  magnitude.     He  was  commissioned  a  Colonel  of  a 
regiment  of  Loyalists  and  to  him  was  confided  the  power  of  granting 
licenses  to  all  the  public  houses  in  the  Country  and  passes  over  the 
Brooklyn  Perry,  which  was  the  source  of  a  large  revenue.     With  the 
march  of  improvement  the  old  house,  and  the  other  one  this  side, 
shown  in  the  view,  was  finally  swept  away,  until  on  their  exact 
site,  in  1838,  the  present  "Astor  House"  was  erected. 


VIEW  OF  BKOA1IWAV. 


RESIDENCE  OF  ABRAHAM  VAN  NEST, 
Sir  Peter  Warren  House. 


The  old  "Warren"  Mansion  stood  in  the  center  of  the  block  now 
bounded  by  Bleecker,  Fourth,  Charles  and  Perry  Streets,  all  of  that 
locality  formerly  being  called  Greenwich  Village.     It  was  built  in 
1740  by  Sir  Peter  Warren,  Vice  Admiral  in  the  Royal  Navy,  and  at 
that  time  in  command  of  the  British  fleet  In  this  port,  who  made  it 
his  summer  home  on  distinction  from  his  town  house  on  the  Bowling 
Green-     In  1748,  when  the  smallpox  was  raging  in  the  city,  the  Colo- 
nial Assembly  accepted  Sir  Peter's  tender  of  his  country  seat  and 
adjourned  thither  to  escape  the  plague  by  being  in  the  country. 

The  Admiral  married  a  daughter  of  Stephen  Delancey,  of  New  York 
but  subsequently  returned  to  England,  where  he  died  in  1752.  He 
left  three  daughters,  one  of  whom,  Charlotte,  married  in  1768  the 
Earl  of  Abingdon,  who,  upon  the  division  of  the  property  of  Sir  Pet- 
er,  inherited  about  fifty-five  acres  of  the  farm,  which  was  disposed 
of  in  1788  for  $2200  to  David  H .  Mallew  of  this  city,  who  in  turn 
sold  it  in  1794  to  Abijah  Hammond,  who  subdivided  it  into  blocks  and 
lots.     The  block  in  question  was  sold  by  Mr.  Hammond  in  1802  to 
Whitehead  Fish,  who  resided  there  until  his  death  in  1819  and  whose 
executors  soon  after  sold  it  to  Mr.  Van  Nest  for  $15,000. 

Mr.  Van  Nest  then  occupied  the  house  and  notwithstanding  the 
waves  of  progress  which  gradually  blended  the  city  with  the  rural 
districts  and  absorbed  them,  he  made  this  beautiful  spot  his  home, 
at  first  as  a  summer  retreat,  later  his  permanent  residence  for 
nearly  fifty  years,  preserving  every  feature  of  its  antiquity  in- 
tact,  in  the  midst  of  a  densely  populated  district  of  the  city.  He 
died  there  in  1864  and  in  the  following  year,  1865,  the  property  was 
subdivided  into  city  lots  and  disposed  of  at  auction,  the  whole 
plot  realizing  about  $150,000.      In  the  same  year  the  old  house  was 
demol I shed . 


'VAUXHALL  GARDEN"  . 


"Vauxhall  Garden",  originally  the  property  of  Jacob  Sperry,  a 
native  of  Switzerland,  who  emigrated  to  this  country  when  a  youth 
about  175G,  occupied  a  considerable  space  between  the  present  Bowery 
and  Broadway  and  Fourth  Street  and  Astor  Place.     Sperry  having  some 
means,  had  purchased  the  property  and  adopted  the  vocation  of  a 
florist  and  horticulturist. 

The  view  shows  the  garden  as  it  was  in  1803,   in  which  year  he 
sold  the  property  to  John  Jacob  Astor  for  L9,000,  and  Mr,  Astor  gave 
a  lease  to  a  Frenchman,  Mr.  Delacroix,  who  moved  the  green  house 
broadside  on  the  Bowery  and  converted  it  into  a  handsome  saloon,  re- 
modelling and  planting  the  garden  so  that  in  course  of  time  it  be- 
came one  of  the  most  popular  places  of  resort  in  the  city.     It  was 
at  that  time  surrounded  by  a  broad  fence,  with  the  main  entrance  on 
the  Bowery,  opposite  Sixth  Street.     It  was  laid  out  in  garden  walks 
with  fine  shade  trees  and  with  tables  for  light  refreshments  and  in 
the  centre  of  the  space  was  a  large  wooden  building  in  which  shows 
and  theatrical  performances  were  held.     The  price  of  admission  to 
the  garden  was  nominal  and  on  fine  afternoons  it  was  crowded  by  men, 
women  and  children.     In  1326  Lafayette  Place,  100  feet  in  width,  was 
opened  through  the  garden,  and  although  thus  cut  into,  it  continued 
to  exist  under  different  managements  as  a  resort,  as  well  as  a  place 
for  public  meetings,  until  it  disappeared  about  the  year  1849. 


1 


VIEW    OE  BUI ItDJN OS  IN    THE   PARK,  N  Y 
1809. 


^ORTH  BATTERY, 


FOOT  OF  HUBERT  ST. 


_1812 


PORTS  GANSEVOORT  AND  NORTH  BATTERY. 


During  the  War  of  1812,  the  United  States  Government  built 
three  forts  on  the  Hudson  or  North  River  front  of  the  City  of  New 
York  for  its  protection  against  any  hostile  fleet.     The  first  of 
these  forts,  was  built  in  1814,  off  the  Battery  Park,  and  first 
called  "Fort  Clinton",  but  later  known  as  Castle  Garden,  now  stand- 
ing. 

The  next  in  order  was  built  at  the  foot  of  Hubert  Street  and 
was  known  as  the  "North  Battery"  or  "Red  Port".     This  was  removed 
and  its  foundation  converted  into  a  wharf  or  pier  about  185C,  and 
this  foundation  was  removed  in  order  to  build  Pier  new  No.  28  North 
River,  in  carrying  out  the  improvement  of  the  water  front  by  the  De- 
partment of  Docks  in  1881. 

Mrs.  Lambs  History  of  New  York  City  says  that  "Fort  Gansevoort" 
also  called  "The  White  Port",  was  built  at  a  bend  in  the  Hudson  at 
foot  of  Gansevoort  Street  in  1815.     It  is  shown  on  "Rande^s  Map"  of 
the  City  made  under  direction  of  Commissioners  Gouverneur  Morris, 
Simeon  DeWitt  and  John  Rutherford,  in  pursuance  of  an  act  of  the 
Legislature  passed  3rd  April,  1807,  and  was  situated  a  short  dis- 
tance from  the  shore,  as  it  existed  at  that  time. 

The  site  is  now  the  block  bounded  by  Washington  and  West 
Streets  on  the  East  and  West,  by  Gansevoort  Street  on  the  South  and 
by  West  12th  Street  on  the  North. 

About  the  year  1850  the  property  was  purchased  by  the  City  and 
given  over  to  commercial  uses. 


BUCK  HORN    TAVERN,  22".°  ST.  BROADWAY 


STONE   BRIDGE  TAVERN  &•  GARDEN 
Canal  St  <€ B-roadxay,S.T  1812. 


CHATHAM    SQUARE.  N.Y.  1812 


THE  STONE  BRIDGE  TAVERN  AND  GARDEN. 
1812. 


In  early  days,  running  from  the  "Kolch"  or  "Collect  Pond",  sit- 
uated about  where  the  "Tombs  in  Centre  Street  how  stands,  and  v/hich 
was  in  later  years  filled  in,  there  ran  a  little  stream  into  the 
East  River,  while  towards  the  Hudson  River  there  stretched  a  marsh 
of  many  acres,  which  about  the  year  1800  it  was  found  necessary  to 
drain  to  and  through  what  is  known  as  Canal  Street,  then  known  as 
Duggan  Street.      A  stone  bridge  of  a  single  arch,  ten  feet,  seven 
inches  high,  above  the  surface  of  the  meadow,  crossed  it  at  the 
junction  of  what  is  now  Broadway  and  Canal  Street,  that  locality  be- 
ing at  that  time  some  distance  beyond  the  settled  parts  of  the  city. 
Near  by,  on  Broadway,  was  a  public  house  and  garden,  known  as  the 
"Stone  Bridge  Tavern",  a  place  of  resort  well  known  to  the  pedestri- 
ans and  pleasure  hunters  of  the  city.     The  drain  was  widened  about 
1807  into  a  canal,  its  banks  set  with  shade  trees  and  a  broad  thor- 
oughfare on  either  side,  the  whole  having  a  width  of  one  hundred 
feet.     As  the  city  grew  the  canal  was  arched  over  with  brick  and 
became  a  sewer,  the  stone  bridge  disappeared,  the  trees  cut  down  and 
the  present  wide  and  bustling  street  was  the  result. 


VIEW  AT  FORT  CLINTON,  M1?  COWANS    PASS  1812 


WORKS  NEAR  MCCOWANS    PASS.  1814- 


THE  OLD  LANDMARKS  ON  MANHATTAN  ISLAND 


PORT  FISH  on  the  Northside  of  CENTRAL  PARK. 
Old  Blacksmith  S  hop    "Washington's  Headquarter. 


Mc GO WAN'S  PASS. 


This  was  a  famous  rocky  pass,  situated  at  what  is  now  the 
north  eastern  part  of  Central  Park.     Nearby  in  the  days  of  • 76  the 
old  homestead  of  Daniel  McGown  (in  history  McGowan)  stood  about 
where  Mount  St.  Vincent  in  the  Park  now  is,  on  a  line  with  106th 
St.  and  Sixth  Avenue  and  through  the  pass  the  troops  of  Washington 
sent  the  British  Redcoats  flying  at  the  battle  of  Harlem  Plains. 
Lord  Howe  on  moving  up  his  entire  army  from  the  city  to  retrieve 
this  disaster  (the  advance  guard  being  the  Hessian  Brigade)  stopped 
at  the  McGown  homestead  finding  that  the  only  male  person  at  home 
was  a  child  of  twelve  years,  Andrew,  whose  father  was  in  Washing- 
ton^ army.     The  boy  being  pressed  into  service  to  guide  the  column 
of  Mercenaries  against  the  American  Camp  quick  wittedly  and  patriot- 
ically intentionally  misled  them,  thereby  giving  the  American  forces 
ample  time  to  move  on  and  camp  behind  their  intrenchments  at  Port 
Washington.     It  was  by  such  a  grand  spirit  as  this  little  lad's  that 
independence  was  achieved. 

During  the  War  of  1812  this  region  also  saw  stirring  sights, 
the  heights  overlooking  Harlem  being  fortified  at  all  points;  Ports 
Clinton  and  Pish  being  erected  to  protect  McGowan's  Pass,  the  belief 
being  that  the  Island  of  Manhattan  was  to  be  invaded  by  a  British 
Army.     The  old  landmarks  have  gradually  been  swept  away. 


 ft  huh  m 


3& 


TOWER    ON    HALLETS    POINT,  1814 


VI  EW   DF  THE    MILL  ROCK.  HELLGATE  NY  1814- 


TOWER  ON  HALLET'S  POINT. 


During  the  War  of  1812,  to  guard  against  any  invasion  by  the 
British  by  way  of  Long  Island  Sound,   the  fortifications  built  upon 
the  East  River  during  the  Revolution  were  strengthened  and  new  ones 
erected.     Hell  Gate  and  the  Channels  of  the  East  River  were  occupied 
by  batteries,  some  of  which  were  protected  by  towers.     On  Hallet*s 
Point  quite  an  extensive  work  was  laid  out  and  named  "Port  Stevens" 
and  in  its  rear  on  Lawrence  Hill,  which  commanded  a  wide  sweep  of 
land  and  water,  a  stone  tower  was  erected  which  stood  until  1880  to 
1890  when  the  hill  was  levelled.     On  Mill  Rock  a  very  strong  block 
house  and  a  powerful  battery  were  placed.     The  old  fort  at  Horn's 
Hook  foot  of  present  89th  Street  was  renewed,  redoubts  were  built  at 
"Rhinelander  Point"  and  at  the  mouth  of  Harlem  Creek,  and  at  "Ben- 
sons"  nearly  on  the  line  with  the  present  Second  Avenue,  was  a 
smaller  earthwork.     At  the  head  of  Harlem  Creek  was  the  beginning  of 
a  parapet  and  ditch  which  ran  to  "Fort  Clinton"  on  an  elevated  rock, 
now  known  as  "Mount  St.  Vincent"  in  the  North  Eastern  part  of  Cen- 
tral Park  and  which  together  with  "Fort  Fish"  was  erected  to  protect 
"McGowan's  Pass"  close  by. 


OS. 


CLD  STATE'S  PRISON. 


The  Old  State's  Prison  begun  in  1796,  and  so  far  finished  that 
the  first  prisoners  were  received  into  it  on  the  28th  November , 1797 , 
stood  on  what  Was  formerly  Amos  Street,  now  West  Tenth  Street  and 
Washington  Street.     The  Prison  Yard  formerly  reached  down  to  the 
Hudson  River  and  outside  were  sunny  fields  and  a  wide  stretch  of 
beach.     The  buildings  and  courts  originally  occupied  four  acres  of 
ground,  having  a  front  on  Washington  Street  of  two  hundred  and  four 
feet,  with  wings  from  each  end,  extending  toward  the  river.  The 
buildings  contained  fifty-four  cells,   twelve  by  eighteen  feet,  suf- 
ficient to  accommodate  eight  prisoners  each,  beside  a  chapel,  dining 
hall,  work  shops,  and  apartments  for  the  officers  of  the  prison. 
The  grounds  and  buildings  were  surrounded  by  a  stone  wall  twenty- 
three  feet  high,  on  the  river  side,  fourteen  feet  high,   in  front, 
extending  in  length  on  one  side  five  hundred  feet,  and  in  breadth, 
two  hundred  and  seventy-nine  feet.     The  original  cost  of  the  grounds, 
buildings  and  wharf,  was  two  hundred  and  eight  thousand  eight  hun- 
dred and  forty-six  dollars.     It  was  sold  by  the  State  about  the  year 
1825  and  for  many  years  thereafter  was  occupied  as  a  Brewery,  con- 
tinual changes,  however,  being  made  until  about  1890,  hardly  the 
slightest  vestige  of  its  original  buildings,  walls  or  surroundings 
remained . 


THE  FLY  MARKET. 


This  market,  built  about  the  year  1706,  at  foot  of  present 
Maiden  Lane,  at  the  time  when  this  picture  was  taken,  about  1816, 
was  the  principal  one  in  the  city.     The  Dutch  formerly  called  it  the 
"Vlaie"  Market,  which  signifies  the  Valley  or  Meadow  Market,  the  word 
"Fly"  being  a  corruption  of  "Vlaie".     It  received  its  name  from  its 
locality  which  was  derived  from  the  circumstance  that  the  immediate 
vicinity  and  indeed  the  whole  East  side  of  the  city  was  originally 
known  as  the  "De  Smit's  Valey"  or  "Smith's  Vly"  or  valley,  the 
ground  where  it  stood  having  originally  been  a  Salt  meadow,  with  a 
creek  running  through  it.    Mrs.  Lamb's  History  states  that  in  the 
early  days,  every  day  except  Sundays  was  a  market  day.  Butcher's 
were  licensed  by  the  Mayor,  who  was  the  clerk  of  the  Market,  receiv- 
ing fees  for  all  meats  sold,  as  for  instance,  six  cents  for  every 
quarter  of  beef,  and  four  cents  for  a  calf,  sheep  or  lamb.  Butter 
had  to  be  sold  by  the  pound,  and  not  by  the  roll  or  tub,  and  all  the 
laws  regulating  the  markets  were  rigidly  enforced. 

Insufficient  in  area,  and  inconvenient  in  its  location  for  the 
growing  city,  it  was  partly  demolished  about  1820,  and  finally  so  in 
1823. 


"WHITE    CONDUIT    HOI'S  i; 

hi  Leonard,  St  between  Broatbray  cuid  Church  St.KY.1816 


"WHITE  CONDUIT  HOUSE. " 


Built  probably  before  or  during  the  Revolution,  was  a  public 
house  and  garden,  a  fashionable  place  of  retreat  for  ice  cream,  re- 
freshments, &c,  which  at  that  time  stood  at  the  top  of  the  Kalch- 
Hook  Hill,  overlooking  a  large  extent  of  surrounding  country,  that 
locality  being  what  is  now  about  the  corner  of  Leonard  Street  and 
Broadway,  the  house  itself  being  on  the  present  Leonard  Street  just 
West  of  Broadway. 

It  was  known  as  the  "White  Conduit  House"  but  later,   in  1B05, 
was  called  "Mt.  Vernon"  Garden.     The  cutting  through  of  the  street 
and  the  grading  of  Broadway  left  the  old  house  high  above  the  level 
and  it  was  reached  by  a  flight  of  steps  and  the  view  shows  it  as  it 
was  in  1316. 

Rapid  improvements  and  the  erection  of  many  first  class  resi- 
dences and  dwelling  houses  in  that  section  took  place  at  that  time 
and  although  the  exact  year  can  not  be  ascertained,  it  is  probable 
the  old  house  was  demolished  soon  after. 


-THE  ROTUNDA. 
City  Hall  Park. 


This  edifice,  which  stood  on  the  Northeast  corner  of  the  City 
Hall  Park,  with  the  entrance  on  Chambers  Street,  was  erected  by 
subscription  in  the  summer  of  1818  on  ground  which  was  given  free 
of  rent  for  ten  years  by  the  Corporation,  on  condition  that  the 
building  should  devolve  to  the  City  at  the  expiration  of  that  time. 
It  was  projected  by  Mr.  John  Vanderlyn,  a  celebrated  artist,  and 
designed  for  the  exhibition  of  large  panoramic  paintings. 

Built  in  circular  form,  of  brick,  it  was  fifty-three  feet  in 
diameter  and  forty  feet  in  height,  surmounted  by  a  pantheon  shaped 
dome  and  skylight,  through  which  the  interior  was  lighted. 

It  had  a  portico,  supported  by  four  columns,  fronting  in  the 
Park.       It  was  open  from  9  o'clock  A.M.   till  4  P.  M.  Admittance 
25  cents.      Coming  into  the  possession  of  the  city,  it  was  used  for 
many  years  as  offices  for  the  use  of  the  Water  Commissioners, Croton 
Aqueduct  Department  and  Commissioners  of  the  Alms  House  Department, 
but  these  were  in  due  time  moved  to  other  quarters  and  the  old 
building  was  finally  taken  down  about  the  year  1870. 


CHRISTIAN  (i.  Gl'STHKH  ESty 
ft  the, present-  M,,,,,  ,-  ,« 


ST.r,UKE'S    CHURCH,  HUDSON  ST.  N.Y 


ST  THOMAS'  CHURCH,  BROADWAY,  N.Y 


W=  Spedonflt  ] 


WALL  Street  at  William  Street,  looking  West.  18?  S. 


THE  ELGIN  BOTANIC  GARDEN. 


This  Institution,   the  first  of  the  kind  established  in  the 
United  States,  was  situated  on  Murray  Hill  about  opposite  the  site 
now  occupied  by  the  Roman  Catholic  Cathedral,  and  covering  the  ground 
between  47th  and  51st  Sts.  and  5th  and  6th  Avenues.     It  was  founded 
in  18C1  by  Doctor  David  Hosack,  then  a  Professor  in  Botany  in  Colum- 
bia College,  who  immediately  after  he  had  purchased  the  ground  from 
the  Corporation  of  the  City,  had  it  cleared  and  put  in  a  state  of 
cultivation  and  arranged  in  a  manner  the  best  adapted  to  cultivation, 
had  buildings  erected  and  a  conservatory  built.     The  greater  part  of 
the  grounds  were  brought  to  a  state  of  the  highest  cultivation,  div- 
ided into  various  compartments  calculated  for  the  instruction  of  bot- 
any, &c .    By  1805  nearly  1500  species  of  American  plants  were  in  cul- 
tivation, besides  a  considerable  number  of  rare  and  valuable  foreign 
ones . 

Later  on  important  additions  of  the  latter  from  various  parts 
of  Europe  were  made,  which  necessitated  the  building  of  additional  con 
servatories  and  buildings.  The  whole  establishment  was  surrounded  by 
belt  of  forest  trees  and  shrubs  and  these  again  were  enclosed  by  a 
stone  wall,  two  and  a  half  feet  in  thickness  and  seven  feet  in  height 

In  1810,  by  a  Special  Act  of  Legislature,  the  garden  became  the 
property  of  the  State  by  purchase  and  placed  under  the  charge  of  Co- 
lumbia College. 

Owing  to  the  apathy  of  the  public  and  various  other  causes  it 
dwindled  and  finally  entirely  disappeared  about  the  year  1828,  the 
entire  plot  of  ground  still  remaining  until  the  present,  the  property 
of  Columbia  College. 


RESERVOIR  OP  MANHATTAN  WATER  WORKS . 


The  "Manhattan  Company"  was  incorporated  in  1799  with  a  view  of 
supplying  the  city  with  pure  and  wholesome  water.     The  capital  was 
$2,050,000,  and  the  charter  which  was  perpetual,  virtually  gave  con- 
trol over  the  streams  and  springs  on  New  York  Island  and  the  County 
of  Westchester  for  the  above  object. 

It  erected  a  reservoir,  as  shown  in  the  engraving,  situated  in 
Chambers  Street,  between  Broadway  and  Centre  Street,  a  locality  then 
considered  far  out  of  town,  into  which  the  water  was  pumped  from 
wells  sunk  in  the  vicinity,  from  which  it  was  distributed  by  means 
of  bored  logs  through  the  city.     It  partially  supplied  the  city  un- 
til about  1822,  although,  for  some  years,  the  works  had  been  proved 
comparatively  worthless  and  the  water  both  scarce  and  bad.     This  be- 
ing the  case  the  Company  neglected  the  ostensible  purpose  of  its  or- 
ganization, and  soon  turned  its  attention  almost  exclusively  to 
Banking  affairs  continuing  until  the  present  time  as  the  "Manhattan 
Company  Bank",  now  at  No.  40  Wall  Street,  although  in  order  to  still 
retain  its  charter  for  a  Water  Company,  it  maintains    near   the  site 
of  its  old  reservoir,  in  a  building  in  Centre  Street,  a  huge  tank. 
The  failure  of  the  Manhattan  Works  to  fully  supply  the  wants  of  the 
fast  growing  city  with  proper  and  sufficient  water,  finally  led  to 
the  resolve  to  construct  an  aqueduct  from  the  Croton  River,  which 
was  accordingly  begun  in  1837  and  finished  in  1842,  and  the  building 
of  the  High  Bridge  and  the  5th  Avenue  Murray  Hill  Reservoir. 


BROADWAY  FROM  THE  BOWLING  GREEN.  1828 


WASHINGTON  HALL. 


This  building,  which  was  situated  on  the  southeast  corner  of 
Broadway  and  Reade  Street,  was  begun  in  1810,  and  completed  in  1812 
and  in  an  architectural  point  of  view,  was  at  the  time  of  its  erec- 
tion, one  of  the  handsomest  structures  in  the  City.     The  architect 
was  Jno.  McComb  and  the  building  committee  of  the  "Washington  Benev 
olent  Society",  under  whose  auspices  it  was  erected,  were  Robert 
Morris,  Jr.,  John  McComb,  Richard  Furman  and  John  B.  Coles.  Its 
early  history  was  intimately  identified  with  the  old  Federal  Party, 
of  which  it  was  the  headquarters  and  in  its  hall  of  meeting  were 
witnessed  many  of  the  exciting  events  which  characterized  our  polit 
ical  history  at  about  the  period  of  the  last  war  with  Great  Britain 
Its  subsequent  uses  were  as  a  Public  Hall,  for  meetings,  assemblies 
balls,  &c,  having  the  largest  room  in  the  city,  and  it  was  also 
kept  as  a  hotel,  being  conducted  during  many  of  its  early  years  by 
Peter  Mclntyre,  and  later  by  James  Ward.     It  was  there  that  the  Cor 
poration  of  New  York,  on  May  4th,  1813,  tendered  a  banquet  to  Cap- 
tain James  Lawrence  of  the  "Hornet"  for  his  Naval  victory  over  the 
British  frigate  "Peacock",  and  a  superb  and  elegant  ball  was  given 
there  on  March  15th,  1814,   in  honor  of  the  joyful  ratification  of 
the  treaty  of  peace.     Within  its  walls,  on  the  28th  of  February, 
1835,  was  organized  the  "St.  Nicholas  Society"  of  our  city.     It  was 
not  well  adapted  to  the  uses  of  a  Public  House,  and  in  1844  was  fi- 
nally purchased  by  A.  T.  Stewart  for  $60,000  —  he  at  the  same  time 
purchasing  the  adjoining  lots  and  buildings  corner  of  Chambers 
Street,  and  then  erecting  and  covering  the  whole  block  with  his 
elegant  marble  building,  moving  into  it  in  1848. 


MANSION   HOUSE, (BUSKERS,)  B ROADWAY, SEW -YORK 


CITY    HOTEL,   TRINITY   &   GRACE  CHURCHES 


BUNKER  *  S  MANSION  HOUSE . 


This  famous  hotel  which  stood  on  the  westerJ.y  side  of  Broadway 
No.   39,  was  a  large  double  house,  built  of  brick,  and  was  erected 
about  the  year  1786  by  Alexander  Macomb,  as  a  residence  for  himself. 
The  great  fire  of  1776  had  destroyed  all  the  buildings  on  that  side 
of  Broadway  from  Morris  to  Barclay  St.,   including  Trinity  Church, 
in  consequence  of  which  this  house  was  one  of  the  first  that  was  re- 
built on  the  "burnt  district".    Moulton,   in  his  History  of  New  York 
says,  according  to  tradition,   that  the  house  stood  on  the  site  of 
the  first  erection  of  any  kind,  by  the  Dutch  on  Manhattan  Island 
which  consisted  of  a  small  redoubt,  built  in  1615. 

On  the  opening  of  the  Second  session  of  the  first  Congress  the 
house  was  selected  as  the  residence  of  General  Washington,  on  ac- 
count of  its  spaciousness  and  contiguity  to  the  Federal  Hall  in  Wall 
Street.     Later  on  as  the  Mansion  House,   it  was  knov/n  as  one  of  the 
best  conducted  and  most  comfortable  hotels  in  this  country,  enjoying 
the  patronage  of  a  large  number  of  Southern  families  who  made  it 
their  stopping  place  on  their  visits  to  this  city. 

Bunker,  from  the  able  manner  in  which  the  house  was  conducted, 
and  his  affability  to  his  customers,  realized  a  handsome  fortune, 
sold  the  property  and  retired  from  business- 

Owing  to  the  progress  of  commerce  and  the  consequent  want  of 
buildings  for  business  purposes  it  became  necessary  to  demolish  the 
old  house,  and  on  its  site  were  erected  (1855)  a  number  of  handsome 
brov/n  stone  stores,  which  were  mostly  occupied  by  some  of  our  heav- 
iest dry  goods  merchants.     These  too  have  since  been  torn  down  and 
replaced  by  fine  modern  buildings. 


CITY  HOTEL,  TRINITY  AND  GRACE  CHURCHES 
about  1830. 

The  view  given,  shows  Grace  Church  in  the  distance,  just  below 
Rector  Street,  which  was  built  in  1809  -  taken  down  in  1844  -  Trini- 
ty Church  as  it  was  rebuilt  in  1788  and  taken  down  in  1839,  and  the 
"City  Hotel"  on  the  site  of  the  old  DeLancey  Mansion,  famous  in  its 
day,  and  where  the  Washington  Inauguration  Ball  took  place  and  v/hich 
in  1792  was  sold  by  Colonel  DeLancey  to  the  "Tontine  Association", 
which  demolished  the  old  stone  structure  and  erected  on  its  site  the 
"City  Hotel"  as  shown  in  the  engraving.     The  Hotel  was  for  many 
years  a  noted  and  favorite  resort  for  prominent  people  and  was  the 
scene  of  many  fashionable  and  brilliant  assemblies.     In  1809  the 
"New  York  Historical  Society"  gave  there  a  grand  banquet  following 
a  celebration  to  commemorate  the  two  hundredth  anniversary  of  the 
discovery  by  Henry  Hudson  of  Manhattan  Island.     In  1812  a  magnifi- 
cent banquet  was  given  there  in  honor  of  Commodores  Hull,  Decatur 
and  Jones  for  their  naval  achievements  -  five  hundred  gentlemen  be- 
ing seated  at  the  tables.     In  1819  a  grand  ball  was  given  by  the 
14th  Regiment  in  honor  of  General  Andrew  Jackson,  who  attended  in 
person.     In  1824,  during  the  visit  of  General  Lafayette,  he  was  a 
guest  there,  elegant  rooms  having  been  prepared  for  him,   the  house 
being  illuminated  on  the  evening  of  his  reception  and  again  also  on 
the  evening  of  the  Erie  Canal  Celebration  in  1825. 

Many  other  brilliant  events  took  place  there  until  it  was  clos- 
ed about  the  year  1850  when  the  building  was  torn  down, upon  its  site 
being  erected  more  modern  business  buildings  which  in  turn  again 
were  demolished  about  1878  to  make  way  for  the  present  handsome 
"Boreel  Building"  running  from  Cedar  to  Thames  Street. 


THE  OLD  SUGAR  HOUSE  IN  LIBERTY  STREET. 


The  Livingston  Sugar  House  built  in  1689  in  Liberty  Street  ad- 
joining the  Middle  Dutch  Church,  was  used,  in  conjunction  with  sev- 
eral churches,  as  a  prison  in  the  War  of  Independence  by  the  British 
under  command  of  Sir  William  Howe  during  the  period  of  their  occupa- 
tion of  the  city.     The  sufferings  of  those  confined  in  this  place, 
were  of  the  most  frightful  character,  occasioned  by  cruel  treatment, 
famine  and  disease  and  was  made  the  subject  of  special  correspond- 
ence by  General  Washington.     The  Building  was  five  stories  high, 
each  story  being  very  low  and  divided  into  two  compartments,  and 
ventilated  by  small  windows,  similar  to  port  holes.     The  prisoners 
were  literally  packed  together,  without  regard  to  their  condition  in 
point  of  health  or  cleanliness. 

The  only  time  exercise  was  allowed  them  occurred  during  the 
summer  of  1777  when  jail  fever,  of  the  most  malignant  kind  broke  out 
among  them,  and  they  were  permitted  in  companies  of  twenty,  to  walk 
for  half  an  hour  at  a  time  each  day,  in  the  yard  attached  to  the 
prison.     After  the  close  of  the  War,  the  building  was  a^ain  used  as 
a  Sugar  House,  and  was  finally  demolished  in  1840. 

C0NT0IT»S  GARDEN. 


Kept  by  John  K.  Contoit,  at  355  Broadway,  between  Franklin  and 
Leonard  Street,  and  opened  there  in  18C9  (having  removed  it  from 
near  Park  Place)  and  calling  it  "New  York  Garden",  an  attractive  re- 
sort for  many  years,  overshadowed  with  trees  and  inside  with  shady 
nooks . 


TAMMANY  HALL.  1830 


TAMMANY  HALL, 
in  1830. 


The  view  given,  represents  Old  "Tammany  Hall"  as  it  was  in 
183C,  situated  on  the  corner  of  Nassau  and  Frankfort  Streets,  the 
name  being  derived  from  an  Indian  Chief  called  "Tammany",  celebrated 
for  his  valor  as  well  as  for  his  benevolence  and  humanity. 

The  "Society",  known  also  as  "The  Columbian  Order,"  was  insti- 
tuted on  May  12,  1789,  for  the  purpose  of  relief  to  the  indigent  and 
distressed  generally,  and  was  composed  at  first  of  the  moderate  men 
of  both  political  parties,  not  being  recognized  as  a  strict  party 
institution  until  the  time  of  Jefferson  as  President.     Until  1798 
its  place  of  meeting  was  "Hardin* s  Tavern",  also  called  "The  City 
Tavern"  in  Broadway,  thence  it  removed  its  quarters  to  the  Southeast 
corner  of  Nassau  and  Spruce  Streets,  in  a  low  wooden  building,  havin 
an  entrance  in  Nassau  Street. 

This  was  its  headquarters  until  the  building  shown  in  the  view 
was  ready  for  occupancy,  which  was  in  1812,  the  corner  stone  having 
been  laid  by  Clarkson  Crolius,  Grand  Sachem,  on  the  13th  May,  1811. 

Amongst  its  earlier  sachems  were  many  prominent  men  such  as 
Philip  Schuyler,  Walter  Bowne,  Pierre  C.  Van  Wyck,  Daniel  D.  Tomp- 
kins, John  T.   Irving,  and  later  John  A.  Dix,  Samuel  J.  Tilden,  Aug. 
Schell,  John  J.  Cisco,  &c . 

In  later  years,  the  old  building  was  altered  and  improved,  the 
peaked  roof  removed,  another  story  added  with  a  flat  roof.     The  So- 
ciety finally  removed  in  1867  to  its  present  building  in  14th  St., 
the  old  building  then  being  again  improved,  and  occupied  by  the  "New 
York  Sun"  newspaper,  as  at  present,  (1896). 


MASONIC  HALL. 


Masonic  Hall  was  situated  on  the  East  side  of  Broadway  just  be- 
low Pearl  Street,  its  corner  stone  having  been  laid  on  St.  Johns 
day,  June  24,  1825,  by  Grand  Master  Elisha  W.  King  in  presence  of  a 
large  assembly  of  the  Fraternity  and  other  citizens.    Fronting  50 
feet  on  Broadway,  extending  back  to  Elm  St.  125  feet,  it  was  built 
of  granite,  its  architecture  being  purely  Gothic.     The  Saloon  on  the 
second  floor  100  feet  long,  50  feet  wide,  and  25  feet  in  height, 
finished  in  the  richest  style  of  Gothic  architecture  and  intended  to 
imitate  the  chapel  of  Henry  VIII  in  London  was  considered  the  most 
elegant  apartment  of  the  kind  in  the  United  States.     A  music  gallery 
extended  across  the  lower  end  of  the  room  supported  by  a  truss  gir- 
der.   Above  the  grand  saloon  on  the  third  story,  were  lodge  rooms 
for  "Master  Masons"  while  the  attic  was  divided  into  two  apartments, 
elegantly  furnished  for  "Royal  Arch"  Chapters.     In  consequence  of 
the  serious  and  prolonged  troubles  growing  out  of  the  "Morgan"  ex- 
citement, the  building  passed  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Masonic  fra- 
ternity, and  became  known  as  "Gothic  Hall"  and  used  for  public  meet- 
ings, concerts  and  balls.     It  was  finally  demolished  about  the  year 
1860. 


